Keeping the Stray
by Saiyon
Summary: B (Bella) is a cat shifter who has lived a hard life after her family was slaughtered by vampires. But then things get even crazier when a vampire named Kate comes across her and realizes B is her mate. M because it's Kate.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

"Ugh," B muttered to herself as she kicked at the contents of a ripped open trash bag. Why did she do this to herself? Why did she let her morals get in the way of a good meal? If she would just get over herself and steal once in awhile, she wouldn't have to go through garbage everyday looking for a meal.

Scowling, she picked up a nearly full plastic container. It was amazing how much people threw out. The wasted food that she wouldn't touch usually due to the smell or the amount of bugs squirming in it...just thinking about the amount she had found in the last day alone, the amount that could have fed her for days, made her heart twist bitterly. Even when she had her parents, had a home, a family, money, and a pretense of safety, B had never wasted even a quarter of what the humans did. Although she guessed she had better count herself lucky, since it was the waste she was now living off of.

Her stomach rumbled, reminding her of just how hungry she was. She opened the plastic container and peered inside it, not quite ready to get her hopes up. After a few cautionary sniffs, she found that the barely touched burger was fine. If she had to guess, she figured whoever had thrown it out probably did so because the meat was nearly raw in the middle. It was a good thing she didn't get sick. Actually, it was a great find. Maybe the red meat would soothe the cat side of her a little.

So focused on inhaling the burger, B didn't take notice of the blonde woman taking soft, graceful steps past the alley. The wind shifted at just the right moment, for the blonde, anyways, as she got a lungful of B's scent. Desire lit inside the blonde like never before, and she peered at the ragged girl hungrily, taking in every detail. It didn't matter that the girl's brown hair was dirty and oily, that the clothes she wore were torn and faded, that dirt coated the girl's body from head to toe. Kate was already ready to pounce.

Just like she had stalked her prey, Kate slunk into the alley, licking her lips with excitement. She almost felt like her heart would start beating as she inhaled the girl's scent again. She smelled like the forest and honey, a strange but delicious smell. One that made the pull even more insistent for the blonde.

She knew. There was no doubt in her mind; this girl was Kate's mate. After over a thousand years alone, she had found her mate. She didn't even care that the girl was human. She would woo her, turn her, and that would be that. The girl would be hers for eternity.

Kate grinned with excitement, just as the wind shifted again. She pouted as she could no longer revel in her mate's scent, but that pout turned into a frown when her mate stiffened, almost as if she had heard or scented Kate. That couldn't be possible, of course. Kate had been silent, and if the girl had scented her, the look of horror wouldn't be crossing the girl's face right now.

Still, the girl seemed to be ready to start shaking from fright, and that immediately put Kate on edge. Who, or what, dared to scare her mate? Her eyes darted around the alley, looking for anything her vampiric sense could have missed, but really, there wasn't anything to see.

B's instincts screamed at her to run. The scent was almost overpowering with its sweetness. Usually the scent of warm chocolate and cinnamon would make her lick her lips with want, but it was the underlying scent that, while B could never put a name to it, told her that the scent wasn't normal.

Turning, B hoped with all of her pounding heart that she was wrong. What were the odds that she could be so unlucky a second time? Yet there, in the alley...there it was. A vampire. In any other situation, B would have admired her beauty. The vampire was beyond gorgeous, with straight platinum blonde hair and an alluring smirk on her face. She was dressed like she was ready to go clubbing in some slinky shirt, tight black pants, and fancy heels, but it was obvious by the look in her strange, quickly darkening golden eyes that she had other plans. The vampire was thirsty.

B was terrified. She knew the chance of her defeating a vampire was nearly nothing. She was going to become another meal, just like her family.

The vampire sauntered over like she had all the time in the world, and B fought not to back up, not to trigger the vampire's instincts to chase. _Not that it would actually help,_ B thought bitterly. _She's already decided I'm going to be her lunch._

"Hello, sexy," the vampire purred, her voice silken and way too sexy for B's soon to be killer. "What's a girl like you doing hanging out in alleys? There are much better places to be, like in my arms…"

 _No. No! I don't want to die!_ Panic took over as the vampire reached for her, and she shifted. The vampire let out a sound of surprise as she realized what she was grabbing for was now a twenty pound cat. B used those extra seconds that the vampire's surprise bought her and bolted as fast as she could away from her. The surprise didn't last long, and soon the vampire was racing after her.

"Hey, Kitten, wait!" she called after B, and B could hear her getting closer.

Heart thumping with terror, B poured on even more speed, speed she hadn't know she had until she was being chased by the vampire. Pushing past her limits, B tried every trick in the book to lose her pursuer. She made sudden turns, backtracked and went a different way, waded through giant puddles, and ran across busy roads. Still, the vampire chased her.

Then B got lucky. She saw her best, but most disgusting bet in a giant sewer pipe. It would barely be big enough for her to fit, but it would be too small for the vampire. It would also be smelly and nasty, but there would be no way for the vampire to get to her, save from ripping the pipe right out of the ground.

Without another thought, B dove for the pipe, so desperately that she slipped. A cold hand grabbed her tail. She let out a yowl of pain, and strangely enough, the vampire's hand let go. Without looking back, B continued to run deeper, even as her fur got soaked and heavy, even as her nose clogged with all of the vomit-worthy smells, B ran, leaving the vampire to her long and creative cursing.

Fearfully, she wondered if the vampire would ever find her again. She didn't think she would be so lucky a second time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Kate, where have you been?" Irina chided the second Kate stomped through the doorway, slamming the door so hard it broke off of its hinges. "You were supposed to be here an hour ago! Don't you remember that the Cullens were coming over today?"

"Yeah," Kate muttered, aware that Irina was now frowning at her, brow creased in concern. It was also clear that Irina was angry, and Irina was as scary as hell when she was angry, so Kate gave her the explanation that Irina had been waiting for. "I met my mate." Her gorgeous, brown haired mate, with a body that was already driving her fucking crazy and gorgeous brown eyes that made her want to start spouting poetry like some stupid sap. Her mate, who could apparently turn herself into a giant, and insanely beautiful, chocolate brown cat that could run as fast as a vampire. And for some reason, decided to run from her.

"Oh, Kate, that's wonderful!" Irina exclaimed, bringing Kate back out of her head just in time to get swept up into a hug she didn't feel like returning. She was even tempted to shock the other blonde, but knew what kind of trouble that would get her into. "What's she like? What's her name?"

"Dunno." Kate was sulking even more now, and she hated it. What, was she becoming Edward? But she had spent all day scouring the city for her mate, trying to figure out where she went, but she couldn't even catch her Kitten's scent after her mate slipped into that fucking pipe.

"What happened?" Tanya asked as she appeared from the back porch. She had originally wanted to congratulate her sister, as did their cousins, but at hearing Kate's less than happy tone, she had decided it would be best to keep her cousins away and talk to Kate with only her and Irina. Thankfully, Carmen and Eleazar were keeping the Cullens distracted.

"Apparently, I scared her off." And judging from the girl's reactions, she knew about vampires. Not that that concerned her; her mate did turn into a giant cat after all. What concerned her was that her mate was fearful enough of vampires to run away from _her_ , even though Kate would never do anything to hurt her. Well, not on purpose, at least.

Inwardly, she winced as she remembered her mate's pained howl when Kate grabbed her tail. She had been so desperate to stop her mate from getting into that pipe that she had grabbed whatever she could with barely restrained strength. But Kate had let go right after she realized what she had done! It was because of her letting go that helped her mate to escape, but she would have done it again in an undead heartbeat. After all, nothing was worth hurting her mate.

At that, Kate's mind took a dark turn. She imagined other people hurting her mate, vampire and human alike. She imagined the dangers her mate faced, knowing she didn't exactly live comfortably in a house. Her fingers twitched as a snarl ripped out of her throat. She wanted desperately to run back out there and continue her search. But Tanya had ordered her home, and she couldn't disobey her older sister, no matter how much she wanted to.

"Kate!" Tanya said for the second time, snapping Kate out of her thoughts. Kate turned to look at Tanya questioningly, but before Tanya could even open her mouth, the porch door slid open.

"Yo Kate, I heard you found your mate! Congrats, cuz!" Emmett boomed, his face alight with a boyish excitement. Tanya frowned as he and the rest of the Cullens filed in, but at catching Carmen's helpless look, she knew that her coven mates had done all they could.

"Yeah." Kate lit up, but only for a second. Then she started pouting again. Why couldn't she keep looking for her mate _now?_ Just because Kate had lived for so long didn't mean she was patient. Her mate was out there, and she wanted to have the girl, her Kitten, in her arms now. Just imagining her arms wrapped around that tiny body, her lips on the girl's skin, or in her hair, set Kate's entire body buzzing. If it felt this way just by imagining it, how would it feel to actually hold her? Kate had a very good imagination, and she could easily replace the fear with a look of longing. A look that would appear on her mate's face soon enough.

She was once again torn from her thoughts––she was doing that a lot today, _thinking––_ by Edward making a sound of disgust.

"You got a problem with something, Eddie?" Kate asked, arching her eyebrows in a silent challenge.

"Your mate is a _human girl_?" Edward asked with scorn. "And she knows about vampires?" At his words, the Cullens let out a bunch of gasps, save for Emmet, who just muttered, "Hot!" only to get smacked in the back of his head by Rosalie. Kate's coven mates shot her concerned looks, but it was still clear that they were on Kate's side.

Crap. Kate had gotten away with her imagination, in trying to recreate the scene with a lot more sexiness and making out. Apparently, dear young Eddie had gotten a good look at her thoughts. Well, at least he had come to his own assumptions about what her mate was...oops, better not go there. Thankfully, Edward was to wrapped up in his fuming to notice her little slip up.

"Yeah she is. Why, is that a problem?" Kate asked in a sickly sweet voice, which only enraged Edward further.

"Yes! She's a _human._ Who _knows about vampires,_ " he stressed, as if he believed that Kate really didn't see the problem. "On top of that, you're both women! How you could even think of this girl in––"

"Can it, Edward," Rosalie snapped, saving the ranting teen from a coven full of angry vampires. But even if she hadn't noticed the Denalis' eyes getting darker with fury as Edward started to rant, she would have said something. She had been lucky enough to find her mate soon after she had been turned, but she knew the Denali sisters had waited way too long to find their own mates. She felt nothing but happy for Kate regardless, and was only getting irritated that Edward didn't feel the same.

"But she's––"

"Edward," Carlisle spoke, cutting Edward off. He turned to the Denalis apologetically, focusing on Kate. "I am so sorry for my son's behavior, especially after you have invited us into your home. I am truly happy that you have found your mate, Kate, and I hope that she becomes part of the family soon."

"Yeah." Kate lit up at the thought of having her Kitten in her home. Of course, with Kate's succubus tendencies, they would probably need their own house...for, like, ever. It could be close by, but it really would be best for her and her mate to have her own place. After all, her cousins shouldn't have to listen to her and her Kitten getting it on. Of course, her desire to have a house just for them had nothing to do with having her mate to herself for days, if not weeks, on end with no interruptions. No worries about Carmen getting upset about them fucking in the kitchen, or Tanya and Irina complaining about them doing it on their favorite couch. No worries, even if they break a few walls. Kate should probably start building now, or have Tanya and Irina do it since she still had to actually _find_ her mate before fucking her brains out…

"That's enough! Your thoughts are beyond immoral! They're––!"

"Carlisle," Esme murmured as the Denalis all let out angry snarls and growls in response to Edward.

"On it. Jasper, with me," Carlisle said.

"She's my mate, dick brains, and I can think whatever I want about her! If you've got such a fucking problem, go fuck a––tree…damn it." Kate let out an angry growl as she straightened from her crouch. She had just been preparing to lunge and shock the shit out of Edward, but Jasper and Carlisle hauled him out of the house faster than Kate could get to him. Grumbling angrily, she turned that anger on the first person who caught her attention. Or planned to, but since it had been Emmett's hand on her shoulder, she felt her anger melting away.

"Wanna play some videogames?" Emmett asked with a cheerful grin, breaking the tension in a way only Emmett could.

Kate glanced over her shoulder to find her coven mates talking intently with Esme and Rosalie. Esme was trying to calm everyone down, which was a hard thing to do since even after a thousand years she and her sisters were still protective as shit towards each other, and right now she had two incredibly pissed off sisters and a barely less angry Carmen and Eleazar. Rosalie, on the other hand, was trying to convince Esme that something needed to be done, that calming Edward down and telling him to keep his thoughts to himself wasn't enough.

As for the last Cullen, Alice, who had been abnormally quiet the entire time, was staring at the floor thoughtfully. While Kate wanted to ask her if she saw anything, or just run out of the house to continue her search––she'd deal with Eddie later––she knew she couldn't leave until Tanya gave her permission.

Sighing, Kate was about to agree, but then Alice stiffened with a gasp. Kate turned back to look at her just in time to see the horrified expression cross Alice's face. Immediately, before Alice even spoke, her dead heart dropped. "Kate...your mate...she's in trouble."

Without a thought, Kate rushed out into the woods, heading for the town where she had last seen her mate.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Kate hadn't even made it a few hundred feet before her phone rang. Kate answered it with a snarl. "What?"

"I thought you'd just like to know where your mate is," Alice said dryly. "Maybe I could tell you?"

Cursing herself for not having a plan, Kate spat from between gritted teeth, "Please."

"First of all, she's in Fairbanks," Alice said, which had Kate skidding to a stop. Really? She had found her mate in Anchorage. How could her mate have gotten so far away in such a short amount of time? Letting out a frustrated growl, Kate turned around and started running in the opposite direction. She could hear Alice laugh. "Yeah, I thought that information would be useful," Alice teased, and if it weren't for the dire situation her mate might be in, Kate would have laughed with her.

"Thanks, Alice," Kate said after listening to where in Fairbanks her mate would be. Hanging up, she then focused all of her energy into getting to Fairbanks as quickly as inhumanly possible.

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B couldn't believe this was happening.

Letting out a low growl, her eyes scanned everywhere for an escape. While there were plenty of options if she had been a cat, she was human right now. Human, and fucked, because she couldn't shift to run. At least, not with a bunch of humans watching. There was a law of secrecy among her kind for a reason.

Jeering, one of the four men stepped forward, closer to her then his buddies. "C'mon, girly. You look cold. Why don't you let us warm you up, yeah?"

B didn't take a step back. If she did, that would mean she was letting them herd her into the dead-end alley like they wanted. Instead, she stood her ground, eyeing them and wondering if she could win if she stood and fight. Normally, she would win with no problem, but it was clear that each and every man was packing a gun. While she wasn't sure if a bullet could kill her, she'd rather not find out.

Seriously, to meet a vampire and a group of rapists all in the same day, could her luck get any worse?

The men started to crowd her, and B wrinkled her nose in disgust. At the moment, she prefered the vampire; at least she smelled better.

Shit, she did not just think that!

"Be a good girl now," a man with crooked yellow teeth said as he grabbed her bicep, squeezing menacingly.

B jerked her arm away. "Let go of me! You stink!"

"What was that, bitch?" Yellow Teeth snarled, pulling his fist back to punch. By the time his fist sliced through the air where B had been standing, B was already twirling away. She had to fight back a hiss as the single punch spurred all of the men into action. They rushed her, all of them yelling expletives and threats. One of them even reached for his gun as another man with long, greasy hair tried to grab her again. She shoved Long Hair away, only to realize her mistake as she found herself easy shootings for the guy with the gun.

He fired. B knew he did; the sound was deafening. And just like the time that her family got slaughtered, all she could do was close her eyes and wait for the killing blow like a coward.

There was a sickening snap, a gurgled scream, and with an angry snarl, three more snaps quickly followed the first. B risked opening an eye, only to find all of the men dead around her, and none other than a very pissed off vampire standing over them. When the vampire turned, B saw that the vampire's once golden eyes were completely black.

 _How did she find me? Did she have a tracking ability like the vampire who had killed my family?_ B took a step back as the vampire stepped forward. Where she refused to let the men herd her into the alley, she couldn't help it with the vampire. It wasn't just B's fear of vampires that had her backing up, it was the way those black eyes were fixed on her, the way the vampire stalked her, the dangerous aura the vampire seemed to emit.

Her back hit a wall all too soon, and still the vampire advanced. B's eyes squeezed shut as she once again waited for her life to end. Waited for the vampire's teeth to tear into her jugular, or maybe she'd be kind and kill B before feeding. B doubted it. Her experience with vampires had taught her that vampires were anything but kind.

B felt a cool touch on her face and jumped, heart nearly launching itself out of her throat with her fear. Her eyes flew open in shock and she found that it really was the vampire touching her. The woman's eyes had lightened somewhat, and looked almost gentle, even worried, as the vampire stroked B's face with her fingertips.

What was this vampire doing? Was she trying to lure B into a false sense of security? Did the vampire honestly believe that something like that would work?

"Are you okay, Kitten?" the vampire asked, and so close to B, the voice washed over her, sending shivers down her spine. "You aren't hurt, are you?"

B's lips parted, but her throat felt tight, choking any words that might have come out. In the meantime, Kate continued her check on her mate.

"I don't smell any blood, but…" Kate muttered to herself as she frowned down at her mate's body. She wanted to run her hands all over the girl, but she wasn't sure her Kitten would take that very well. Even now, no matter how much Kate wanted to kiss her or hug her or grope her, she had to keep herself in check. She'd have plenty of time for groping her mate once her Kitten opened up to her.

Realizing her mate never answered her, Kate looked back into the girl's eyes. "Are you hurt?" she asked in a low purr as she pressed herself against her mate. This much contact surely couldn't hurt, right? After all, Kate was just...making sure her mate couldn't run away. Yeah, that's it. "Kitten. I need an answer."

The girl shook her head slowly, still looking petrified. Really, her mate needed to relax. Kate new the perfect way to get her to...but it really wasn't a good idea to do this out here in the cold.

Wait. Cold. Kate frowned down at her Kitten, realizing what little scraps of cloth the girl had covering her, and how cold the temperature and Kate's body was. While the girl felt incredibly hot herself, she was definitely not dressed for the weather. Without a thought, she made a move to strip out of her shirt which, while it didn't cover much, would still be warmer than what the girl had on, but the girl's squeak of fearful shock made her stop. Damn it, why hadn't she worn a jacket today? She always hated to wear more clothes than necessary even if it was to blend in––if she could, she'd walk around nude––but now she was angry with herself for not thinking ahead.

"I need to get you warmed up, don't I?" Kate frowned. It had been a lot of years since she had spent a period of time around a human, and while her mate wasn't quite that, she still had human needs. She needed food, water, warmth, a bathroom...wait. Kate realized, with a sudden shock, that she had forgotten one very important detail. "My name's Kate. What's your name, Kitten?"

B stared at the vampire, Kate, in shock, still confused as to why she wasn't dead. What was this vampire doing, checking to see if she was alright? Talking about getting her warm? Now she was even asking B her name? Did this vampire like to play with her food, or was she just insane?

Apparently B didn't answer fast enough––B was actually still considering answering at all––because Kate pressed herself against the smaller brunette again, stared deep into B's eyes with a weird, dark, smoldering look, and purred, "Name."

"B," B answered as if hypnotized.

"Like a bumble bee?" Kate asked, smirking at the thought of her mate dressed up in a sexy bee costume. She wasn't sure if it existed, but she was sure that if it didn't, she'd find someone to make it.

"No. Just B, like the letter." That smirk was what caused B to speak before thinking.

"Short for something?" Kate prodded. B started to nod, but then realized she was getting caught up in the vampire's pace and stopped herself. She tried to shove Kate away, but her malnourished state wasn't giving her much strength. In fact, the vampire seemed to enjoy B's struggles, as she pressed herself impossibly closer. "Mm, while I could enjoy feeling you move against me all day, I need to get you some place warm."

Why? Why couldn't B get away? Why couldn't she––wait, why was she being so stupid? She was a cat shifter! While the vampire might not be surprised, if she shifted, B might actually be able to escape.

"Don't even think about it, Kitten," Kate said, wrapping her arms around the brunette and lifting her off of the ground. B let out a squeak and struggled, but Kate only showed amusement at her attempts at escape. "There's no way I'm going to let you go again. For all I know, you might run all the way to Canada before I catch you again." Kate paused as she realized that there were still four dead bodies to take care of, and her eyes darkened as she remembered what they had almost done to her mate. An angry growl rumbled out of her throat, and B immediately stopped struggling. Kate was then angry at herself as she realized she had scared her mate, who now simply trembled in her arms. "Shit, B, I didn't mean to scare you, okay? Look." Kate maneuvered her mate so she could hold B with both hands on the girl's waist, keeping her a few inches off of the ground so they were at eye level. "I'm never going to hurt you. Ever. I'm just pissed at the guys who attacked you. Got it?" Before B could even attempt to answer, Kate grinned. "Good. Now, let's take care of these bodies and get going, shall we?"


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

After managing to dispose of four bodies and take a car from the men she killed, all with only one hand, Kate had gotten into the driver's seat and happily sat B on her lap. While she knew her mate was still scared of her, things were already looking up. After all, B wasn't as scared as before, and she now had B in her arms––well, between them, since she had to keep both hands on the wheel. The first thing she did as she got them settled was lock the doors and crank the heat up to its max.

 _That should keep my mate warm,_ Kate thought proudly to herself as the blasting air slowly started to heat up. She couldn't stop grinning as she pulled onto the road. She had rescued her mate, and had managed to keep her. Well, for now. She was pretty sure that if she didn't help B understand that B was Kate's mate soon, B might try to escape again. While Kate just wanted to blurt it out at that very moment, she knew how easily B would freak out. So that's why she decided she'd get her coven's opinion first, then tell her.

Although, if Edward was still there, she'd have a few more problems on her hands. She still needed to exchange a few words and punches with him...maybe some kicks...of course, Kate would also happily sit there and shock him for a few hours, or days...crap! She had forgotten to tell anyone that she wanted a house built!

Great, just great. She didn't want to call them now because she didn't want to stop holding B, but something had to be done. Maybe her sisters would take it easy on her and let her and B have some fun. Of course, she'd have to get B over her fear of Kate first. Now, that's gonna take some work.

Kate glanced down at the mate in question, and noticed how B was staring wide eyed out the window, looking just as frightened as when they had first met. Kate tried to figure out what B was looking at that was freaking her out, but seeing nothing, decided that B just needed a little help warming up...and what better thing to do then let Kate help her?

Carefully, slowly, so as not to spook her, Kate removed her hand from the steering wheel and ran it up B's back. B stiffened but didn't pull away, so Kate took that as incentive to keep going. She ran her fingers lightly up the side farthest from her, eyes darkening with desire. She couldn't wait for the chance to run her hands all over her mate...her naked mate...her naked mate who would be begging for her, desiring her...she bent her head to brush a kiss on B's neck unthinkingly, and B's heartbeat skyrocketed so fast that it startled Kate into pulling back.

Oh, right; scared of vampires. Damn it, and now Kate was all hot and bothered too. She cursed her own imagination. Who would have guessed that one of her greatest weapons would turn against her?

"Sorry, Kitten. Didn't mean to scare you," Kate said, trying to reassure the girl. She wrapped both hands around B's waist in what she hoped B would view as a comforting gesture, but didn't expect the shriek she'd get in return.

"Keep your hands on the wheel!"

At B's terrified voice, Kate arched her eyebrows but placed both hands on the wheel as requested. "Is there a problem?"

"You're going too fast. I don't want to crash," B muttered in a small voice, realizing how stupid she sounded. After all, she was going to die anyways, wasn't she? It didn't matter that Kate said she wasn't going to hurt her. If vampires could kill without thought, couldn't they lie just as easily?

To her surprise, the vampire laughed. It was a sexy, unrestrained sound that gave B goosebumps. "You have nothing to fear, cutie. Vampire reflexes makes it impossible."

B felt herself blush a little, then fought it down when she realized what a temptation that must be to a vampire. Once she believed she had done so successfully, she risked a glance up to find that Kate was staring at her with dark eyes.

"Damn, do I love that. I'm going to have to make you do that again," Kate said in a tone that was a mix of teasing, and something else. B swallowed and curled up in Kate's lap, wanting to hide her head in her arms. Instead, she gathered her courage to ask the questions that had been haunting her since the moment the vampire had decided not to kill her.

"What do you want from me?" B asked in a soft voice, her entire body tense as she waited for the verdict.

 _You. Your body, your heart, your soul...damn, I wanna tell you. I'm gonna tell you. Damn it, no, I can't tell you, not until I at least ask Tanya for advice…_ Kate nearly growled in frustration but stopped herself, remembering how the sound scared her mate. Why did all of this have to be so hard? Why couldn't B just look at her, realize Kate was her mate, and fall into bed, or anywhere, really, with her?

Wait, didn't the Cullens mention some things about those mutts in La Push?

"Do you imprint?" Kate asked suddenly. She focused all of her attention on B in a way that made the girl nervous, and not just because Kate's eyes were no longer on the road.

Should B answer her even though Kate ignored her question? What could it hurt? Yeah, it was a little scary that the vampire knew anything about shifters at all, but still. The longer they were talking, the longer Kate wouldn't be drawn back to B's neck. "No. Imprinting is something that happens to less evolved shifters, those who need that extra push to find a mate to carry on the family line. Shifters like me have mates, but it's not such a sudden, jarring thing; we figure it out over time."

Kate didn't know whether to laugh or growl. The whole imprinting thing would have made everything easier, but at the same time, here her mate was, calling an entire pack of egotistical wolves primitive. The laughter won out, startling the girl, but Kate barely got started before B's growling stomach stopped her.

Damn it, didn't she just remember a little while ago that her mate needed food? She had been so wrapped up in finally having her mate that she had stupidly forgotten about needing to feed the way too skinny girl. She made a sudden right, tires screeching, scaring B enough for B to cling to her in desperation––Kate considered becoming even more of a reckless driver because of that, but decided she would rather not frighten her mate anymore than she already had––and drove down a side road. B didn't stop clinging to Kate until the car slowed to a stop, and when she risked a glance out the window, she saw the car was idling in front of a McDonald's.

"Order whatever you want, as much as you want," Kate said, taking a moment to soothingly run her hand up and down B's back as B looked between her and the menu.

Really, what was going on? Was the vampire planning to fatten her up before eating her, or was she actually being nice? But why? Why would Kate continuously be nice to B like this? It made no sense.

"How can I help you?" a staticky voice blared over the speakers, making B jump, startled. Kate had to chuckle at that. Her mate really was one big scaredy cat, wasn't she?

"Whatever you want," Kate repeated softly, seeing the suspicion in B's eyes. It hurt, but Kate decided that something bad really had to have happened to her involving vampires, which wasn't too hard to understand. She figured she'd be able to get that information out of her some time along the two hour drive back to Denali.

B wavered, but hunger eventually won out. She nodded, then proceeded to stare at the menu...only to grow embarrassed. "I can't read," she admitted in a small voice, which caused the vampire to stiffen under her. In truth, B had only learned to talk so well by listening to other people. But the vampires had come for her and her family when she was barely five, and just learning how to spell her full name. Then she was left alone, and spent every moment of her life just trying to survive.

"We'll have seven big macs," Kate ordered, not knowing how much B might eat. "Also, I need two large waters, a lemonade, and a Coke." There. Now Kate was sure she had to have gotten something right. It still hurt her knowing how ashamed B sounded about not being able to read, but it was clear something had happened when she was little that made her end up on the streets. Depending on the reason also depended on how many people she'd kill. Unlike the Cullens, while she had a respect for human life, she wouldn't hesitate to kill those who dared to hurt her mate.

The worker repeated Kate's order back to her, and when Kate found it was right, she drove to the next window. The worker there did a doubletake when he saw the small, pretty brunette in a gorgeous blonde's lap, but knew better than to say anything when he saw a glint of dangerous possessiveness in the blonde's eyes.

B could only stare, stunned as, after Kate paid, she found bag after bag being placed on her lap. Kate wrinkled her nose at the disgusting smell, but knew without a doubt that putting up with the smell was worth it...as long as her Kitten brushed her teeth before they made out for the first time. Placing the drinks on the seat next to her, she gave a smile to the worker who had given her the food, dazzling him completely, before driving off.

"Go ahead, eat up," Kate prodded when B could do nothing but stare at the food.

Tentatively, B pulled out a burger and took a bite. Immediately, she lost control as she tasted warm meat for the first time in years and she dug in. She finished off five burgers, one of the cups of water, and tried the Coke, only to find it burned her tongue and made her stomach uncomfortable. She couldn't remember a time when she had been so full before, and she stared at Kate with a sort of awe.

Catching the look, Kate's lips quirked up in a small smile. She could get used to being looked at like that, although it was amazing how happy some food had made her. Before Kate's thoughts could take that dark turn again into what B had been eating before Kate had come along, Kate pulled into the McDonald's parking lot and stopped.

"Well, I gave you food," Kate said as she stared into B's confused face. "I think you owe me something now." She watched the fear come back full force, and B tried to scramble away from her. Kate realized that B must have thought Kate meant a meal for a meal, and quickly grabbed the girl as she started to panic. "No! I just want to hold you!" Kate quickly assured B, causing the girl to stop struggling. She looked at Kate with mistrust, but it was better than the panic. Besides, B had a right to look at Kate like that. After all, Kate had been originally planning a little feel up of her mate if her mate hadn't been too freaked out by the hug. Now, though, she had to give up on her dream...for now. "I mean it. I want to hug you, hold you, maybe nuzzle you a little. Sound good?"

B just stared at her and started to shake. She couldn't understand what this vampire was planning, and not knowing was even worse than knowing she was going to be murdered. But for some reason, she found herself nodding.

"Yes!" the vampire cheered, looking a lot like a child who had just gotten the present they always wanted. Her arms snaked around B's waist before B could even understand what was happening, and she suddenly found herself getting jerked into Kate's embrace. B felt dizzy as Kate buried her face in B's neck, overcome with the scent of warm chocolate and cinnamon. A part of her hazy brain wanted to sink her teeth into the source of the scent, but thankfully, she was all too aware that the scent came from a dangerous, murderous vampire. A vampire whose scent, body, and voice was all perfected to lure prey in.

"Mm…" the moan that came from Kate was definitely a surprise, and B froze, realizing how close the vampire's mouth was to her neck. Yet while she felt the brush of lips against her skin, she never felt any teeth.

"Don't I make you thirsty?" B muttered, and she had no idea why that stupid question had actually come out of her mouth.

"No." Kate finally pulled back, knowing not to push anything, and B got to see her black eyes. "That isn't thirst," Kate told her with a wicked grin, noticing what B might have been about to point out.

B shivered as Kate's gaze seemed to pierce right through her, but then another, more pressing matter came up as her stomach rolled.

"I'm going to throw up," B muttered, and Kate's frown of confusion at seeing B clutch at her stomach became wide eyed panic as she realized what was happening. She quickly unlocked the door and carried B out, placing her on the ground and putting both hands on her shoulders a second before B let chunks fly.

As B continued to throw up, Kate continued to panic. What was she supposed to do? If she doesn't give B food, she'll die of starvation. If she does give B food, she throws it all up. What other options were there?

Finally, B's violent hurling came to a stop, and Kate rushed B back inside the car where it was still blasting heat. She wiped at B's face, rubbed her back, and watched her worriedly.

B would have laughed at the expression on Kate's face, and almost did, but she was still weak from throwing up. She didn't think it was even possible for a vampire to panic that much until she saw Kate's face. Still, she did give the vampire a weak smile.

"Sorry, I guess my stomach isn't used to eating so much food."

Kate blinked at her, incredulous. B had thrown up because she had eaten too much? Why the hell did that happen? For fucks sake, her mate had been starving! She needed to eat, and now her body was going to say that she couldn't?

To make matters worse, B's stomach let out a loud growl. Kate's face was priceless as so many emotions flashed across it. There was worry and fear, mostly, since Kate wanted to help her mate, wanted her mate to never be hungry again, but didn't want to deal with the scare of a vomiting B. While Kate had been sure she could fight anyone and anything for her mate, she couldn't fight her Kitten's own stomach.

B reached for another burger, causing Kate to grab her wrist. B jumped, startled, and realized that the vampire really did look concerned. It gave the girl a strange feeling, one she didn't feel like trying to decipher.

"It's fine. I just need to take it slow," B said, and watched as Kate hesitantly, warily, let go of her. This vampire really was strange. B found herself making a big show of unwrapping the burger, taking a bite, chewing, swallowing, and even though she was sure she wouldn't throw up and could take a few more bites, but the burger down on its wrapper. Kate watched her for a long moment, then relaxed with relief.

Still, she was anxious. She almost said that they should wait here, but then took a look at the gas and realized it was better to just rush home. Sighing, she kept her arms close around B to the point where B had to struggle and stretch to reach even the closest food, and pulled out of the parking spot and onto the road.

"Be careful, please," Kate muttered, and B once again looked up at her. This was a very strange vampire indeed.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Kate killed the engine on the car, looking away from her house to stare wonderingly at the girl curled up on her lap. For someone who had been so terrified of her for so long, her mate sure did love to cuddle in her sleep. Apparently, everything that had happened today had finally caught up with her Kitten. B now had her head on Kate's chest, her arms draped over Kate's shoulders and her legs wrapped tight around Kate's waist. It had been an interesting way to drive, but it had been so worth it.

Crap. Kate really didn't want to move. She glanced from the house where she knew everyone, save for Edward, waited, then back to her mate. She considered driving off and taking some time to enjoy some more cuddling time, but knew that the car had basically been running on fumes by the time she got here. Maybe she could just wait in the car for as long as humanly possible? But what if her mate got cold?

"Kate, get in here," Kate heard Tanya say with a sigh of exasperation, and Kate had no choice but to get up with an annoyed groan. She made sure to keep B close, finally accomplishing one of her dreams as she got to grope B's ass––for carrying purposes only, of course––as Kate brought her mate inside.

Carmen was the one to open the door, a happy smile on her face. Her eyes softened, glowing with love for Kate. It was about time that one of the sisters found their mate, and she couldn't be happier.

"She's a pretty one," Irina commented, coming up to give Kate a welcome back hug in welcome.

"Yeah," Kate sighed, love struck. "And she's mine." The last held a possessive edge as Kate held B just a little bit closer.

"She is," Tanya agreed as she came over to give her sister a hug as well. "Now, how about we find a bedroom for you to place her in?"

"But I don't wanna," Kate whined as she followed her sister into the house. "What's wrong with just holding her?"

Alice let out a bell like laugh as she all but danced down the stairs. "Because when she wakes up, she's going to be just a little freaked out. She's not going to react well to being carried around like a little kid."

"But she's the one who chose to hang onto me!" Kate complained.

"Are you _trying_ to wake your human?" Rosalie interrupted, arching an eyebrow at Kate as she glided over, Emmett right behind her.

"Oh, shit, right," Kate said, then realized she should lower her voice, and did so. "This is my mate," she told them in a proud whisper, practically glowing with happiness.

"Well let me just say, your mate sure is a smelly one," Emmett said with a laugh. Next thing he knew, he was on the floor convulsing with pain, Kate making sure to keep contact with him for as long as possible, eyes dark and angry.

"She doesn't stink. She smells like the forest...and honey. She smells better than your nasty ass," Kate shot at her friend with a growl, only stopping when Tanya put a hand on her shoulder and gently pulled her back. Letting out a huff of annoyance, she hugged her mate closer to her.

"Sorry about my husband. You know how he is," Rosalie offered up, and all of Kate's anger slipped away.

"Yeah. Sorry about frying him," Kate said, although it was clear she didn't mean it. Still, Rosalie couldn't help a small smirk that appeared on her face.

"He deserved it," she said, and with that her eyes darkened as she looked toward the dirty and bedraggled brunette who was somehow still asleep. Alice had told her what had almost happened, and it caused enough anger to send Rosalie outside so she could take down some trees. "Why don't you go take care of your mate?"

"Yeah." Kate looked up, only to stare at Jasper, who was looking at her mate in confusion. Jasper sensed her possessive emotions and flicked his eyes up to meet Kate's. He simply nodded and sent out calming waves so Kate would know her mate wasn't in any danger from him. In fact, that was what was so strange about her. The girl didn't stir his thirst in the slightest, which made Jasper believe that the girl wasn't human like Edward had so adamantly believed.

"I can't wait to meet her," Esme spoke up with a soft smile, and Kate grinned back.

"Her name's B. She's the coolest mate ever," Kate bragged, making many vampires in the room snort or shake their head fondly. Glancing down at her mate once again as she felt B getting restless, she decided the best thing to do was bring her upstairs like Tanya suggested. Of course, that didn't mean Kate had to leave her, or even put her down. She grinned as she went up the stairs two at a time towards her room. B wouldn't have to wake up feeling like she was being carried around like a kid, because B was simply going to wake up in Kate's arms. Of course, Kate would have to refrain from groping B while she slept, but Kate figured she'd manage...as long as B woke up soon.

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When B felt herself waking up, she actually felt content, safe...something she hadn't felt since her family had been murdered. That was another surprise; there hadn't been any flashbacks, not even a remembered scream from that night she had everything ripped away from her.

With a soft yawn, B stretched herself out, arching her back and letting out a soft purr, her nose filled with the scent of warm chocolate and cinnamon. She was so out of it, she didn't even realize that there was a hand on her waist, or that she had arched her back in a way that pressed her butt against something solid. That is, until she felt the hand on her tighten slightly, followed by a hissed, "Fuck."

B froze, eyes snapping open. Realizing she was in an unfamiliar room, she tried to scramble to her feet, but Kate quickly slid her arms around her.

"Shit, don't flip out. I didn't mean to scare you. But c'mon, you can't do something like that and expect me not to react," a familiar voice all but whined in her ears, and while those arms gave her enough room to flip around to face the one holding her, they also refused to let go.

"Kate," she said softly, shocked. She was shocked even more so at the large, wicked grin that slid over Kate's face, Kate's once golden eyes now a dark amber that burned in a way that made her seriously uncomfortable.

"Mm...I love how you say my name. Say it again?" Kate murmured, pulling B even closer so that their faces were only a few inches apart––space that her body didn't feel the relief of having, since she was pressed against Kate's every curve.

Before Kate could do anything else, B's attention was captured by the sound of something downstairs. She stiffened, making Kate frown, and turned her head away to scent the air. Immediately, her body locked as panic flooded her.

"Kate, hang on to her! Don't let her go!" Alice screamed, and Kate only had a second of warning before B went wild. Kate tightened her grip on her mate as B shifted, letting out a hiss as she fought not to accidentally hurt her and at the same time not let her go. B shifted back to human, and Kate loosened her grip quickly, afraid of accidentally crushing her. B yowled and fought like the devil himself was trying to kill her, and Kate let out a string of curses as she rolled on top of B, trying to pin the thrashing girl to the mattress.

"Why couldn't I have ended up on top during a more favorable time?" Kate complained as she fought to grab B's hands, then paws, then hands again. She felt a slice along her cheek, and was surprised that it actually hurt. "Damn, you're a feisty one," Kate said with clear pleasure, her imagination already running wild.

"Kate, focus, she's about to get free!" Alice shouted, snapping Kate out of it just as B shifted again. Kate grabbed her just in time, pinning B with her body, and when B shifted back to human, B was stuck struggling under Kate, and Kate was struggling with not letting her mind wander at seeing her mate, her Kitten, on her stomach, on all fours, under her.

"Fuck my life," she growled as she took a serious effort to banish those thoughts from her head. Grabbing B securely around the middle, Kate pressed her lips right under B's ear and murmured, "Calm down, Kitten. Nothing's going to hurt you here. Although even if anyone was going to try, there's no way in hell I'm going to let them." Her words didn't seem to have any effect, B was so panicked, but B was calming anyways as all of the vampires downstairs hurried out of the house. Still, it wasn't enough, and B showed no signs of stopping.

"Kate, you're going to have to knock her out," Tanya said from outside, and Kate let out a furious hiss at the thought. It was the wrong thing to do, as B just got even crazier. "Kate! If you don't do it, she's going to hurt herself. You have to."

Gritting her teeth, Kate maneuvered herself so she could put her fingers against three pressure points and pressed, using her legs to keep B from breaking free. B slumped, and Kate's heart hurt just knowing she had to do that to her mate.

"I'm so, so sorry," Alice said, suddenly appearing in her room. Kate tensed, protectively hovering, but forced herself to calm down. "It's hard enough seeing her, and I guess my stupid vision didn't take into account her own reactions to waking up in a house full of vampires. I'm really so sorry."

Seeing Alice looking ready to burst into tears, not that it was possible, Kate relaxed with a sigh. "It's fine, Alice. And it's too late now. But I don't know what I'm supposed to do. If she wakes up, she's just going to freak out again."

"Actually…" At this, Alice slyly held out a key for Kate to take.

"Alice had a vision of you pouting all week while we worked to build you two a house, so while the house is getting worked on, we rented a cabin fifty miles from here," Irina explained as she peered around the door, clearly worried for her sister.

"None of us have been inside, either," Eleazar commented softly from downstairs. "So your mate will feel as safe as she can."

Tanya suddenly appeared in the room, gazing at her sister and her sister's mate. "She's a shifter," she stated in a calm voice.

"Yeah. But she's not like the ones the Cullens have to deal with. My mate is better. She told me shifters like them are primitive, and she's not." Kate puffed up with pride for her mate once more, but quickly calmed down as what she had done came back to haunt her.

"Go, Kate. Before she wakes up," Tanya murmured, handing Kate a map to the cabin. Kate nodded in thanks, snatched the keys out of Alice's hand, and was running out of the house in seconds.

She really hoped her mate would forgive her.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: Hey guys, thanks for reading so far. I want to say how amazed I am at how many people have already read, reviewed, favorited, and followed my story since it hasn't even been twenty four hours yet, and it's amazing. Thanks for all the support, and while I won't be able to continue uploading so many chapters a day due to school, I'll continue to do the best I can. Thanks again, and I hope everyone has enjoyed my story so far!**

Chapter 6

When B woke, it came as a surprise. She had seriously believed that the vampire's only reason for bringing her back was so B could become a family meal. Yet when she opened her eyes, she knew she wasn't in the afterlife. After all, whether or not there was a heaven and hell, she figured the afterlife wouldn't smell like warm chocolate and cinnamon, and that when she did die, she wouldn't wake up on a bed with an anxious vampire hovering over her.

"Are you okay? Did I hurt you? Shit, I should've realized you'd freak out about the whole vampire family thing––I mean, you freaked out when you met _me_ so how was I supposed to expect you to react to a bunch of strangers? Shit, sorry, I really fucked up. I was just so stupid that I thought––"

"Why?" B's single word gave Kate pause as B slowly, warily, sat up. "Why did you bring me here? You're acting like you actually care about me."

"I do," Kate stated sharply, eyes darkening with anger at the thought that B actually thought she didn't.

B was proud that she barely even flinched. "Then why am I here? What other reason could I be here other than to become a meal for your... _family_."

For Kate, B's words were bad enough, but there was something else, something about the way B had spat _family_ that made her frown. Instead of trying to get her to talk about anything and everything she could, Kate reached out and placed her hand on B's arm, but B jerked away, so Kate's hand fell back to her side.

What was happening? Why was B actually feeling guilty about the expression on Kate's face? Kate was a vampire, damn it.

"I told you, didn't I? I'm never going to hurt you, and I'm never going to let anybody else hurt you either," Kate muttered, looking away. "And I brought you here because it seemed like the only option. The only way I could convince you to stay."

B opened her mouth to ask what Kate meant by that, but then Kate spoke up again.

"Besides, none of us would ever knowingly try to drink from you. We're vegetarians." At B's look of confusion, Kate said, "We only drink from animals."

B stiffened slightly and looked away. After all, she was half animal. So did that mean that she was only in danger when she was in cat form? Should she even believe Kate about her drinking habits in the first place?

"Damn it," Kate cursed, reaching over and gently taking hold of B's chin to turn B back to face her. "Look at me." Kate's words sent a shiver down B's spine, and B found herself obeying. Kate fought not to lick her lips, since that was the one thing that could make the situation worse, and kept her eyes on B's, instead of her eyes traveling to her mate's lips, or cleavage, like they seemed to want to do so badly. "See my eyes? They're gold. It's a side effect of drinking animal blood."

"You say that I'm safe, but I'm not just a person, I'm an animal," B murmured softly, hypnotized by Kate's eyes. It wasn't just that B wanted to believe Kate, but there was something about Kate's voice, about the earnest expression on her face, that made it incredibly hard to think Kate was doing anything besides telling the truth.

"First of all, you still classify as a person. Even in cat form, no one's going to want to take a bite out of you. Second of all, you _are_ safe. If anybody tries to hurt you, they'll end up like those bastards from today."

B blinked, her mind fuzzy. Had all of this really happened today? Had her entire life really been changed in under twenty four hours? It had still been dark that morning when she had been looking for food, and it had been just turning dark to welcome the night when she had been attacked. It was still dark out now...but could so much have happened to B in under a day? B really didn't want to think about how much could happen tomorrow, now that she was being kept in the vampire's lair.

"So…" Kate prompted, gazing at B with glittering eyes. "Uh, we're going to stay in here, instead of at the main house. So you don't freak out again. We've got food, drinks, a bed, a bathroom, games…Looks like Alice already stacked up the closet." Kate started flitting around the house, checking things out for herself; she hadn't even looked around since she couldn't leave B's side. She came back with a board game under one arm, holding up an xbox game in the other. "What do you wanna do?"

Slowly, B got up, frowning at the vampire. Was she really expected to just play games and do normal, human things? Really?

"Um, can I take a shower?" B asked softly, excited at the thought of bathing in something other than a river or lake, of actually being clean. That dip she had taken in the Yukon River really hadn't been enough to get rid of even half of the gook that had coated her, and while B didn't get cold easily, walking into a river in a place like Alaska was one of the few thing that could make her teeth chatter.

Kate's eyes lit up, and B once again felt like she had just given the vampire the greatest gift in the world. "Of course!" Kate exclaimed, dropping the games on the bed and grabbing B's hand. "We can go take one right now. I'm sure we'll enjoy it quite a bit."

"Wait, wha––? Alone! I want to take a shower alone!" B exclaimed in terror as she struggled against Kate's grip. "No, please, come on...you don't need to watch me every second, do you?"

"Of course not, but I sure do enjoy it," Kate replied cheerfully, still dragging her Kitten along, easily able to ignore her struggles. "Getting all hot and wet in a shower together...yum, talk about a great way to end the day."

"Kate! Please!" B begged right as Kate started to pull B into the bathroom. Kate paused and looked back at her mate, realizing how panicky B was at the thought of showering together, and sighed.

"Fine. But next time, we're showering together," Kate mumbled with a pout, causing B to blush deeply. Before Kate could change her mind, B had pushed her out and locked the door behind her. Kate continued to grumble as she looked around the room, then decided that the best thing to do would be to get B some clothes.

Inside the bathroom, B was trying to calm her heart as she turned on the shower. _That vampire is crazy,_ B thought as she continued to take deep breaths to settle herself down. _I can't believe she actually wants to shower together. And she still wants to! There's no way I'm ever going to shower with her, ever. I'd rather die._

Finally calm enough, B stripped down and stepped into the tub. She let out a sigh as she relaxed under the warm spray, and her eyes closed. Kate's mischievous face appeared behind her eyelids, and B jumped like she thought Kate had actually appeared in the room with her. Placing a hand over her heart, B looked around for the soap, realizing there was a large amount of bottles in the shower with her. These couldn't all be soap, could they? There was a bar of soap resting in a little soap holder, so why…? B picked up one of the bottles and opened it, taking a sniff. A familiar, nostalgic smell washed over her, bringing back a memory of bath time with her mom. Oh, this was either shampoo or conditioner. For her hair. Remembering that conditioner tended to be thicker, she squirted some onto her hand, realized it was most likely shampoo, and put it into her hair. As she scrubbed at her head furiously, she looked around for what might be conditioner, opening many bottles and squirting a little out before she found one she was sure was what she had been searching for. She placed it down where she could remember it as she washed the shampoo out, then grabbed the bottle again to put the conditioner in her hair. As she did this, her eyes started to water with unshed tears.

How could this be? How could a vampire, of all things, make her feel more human and bring back memories that she had thought she had forgotten? B had even fallen asleep, without a nightmare, for the first time in twelve years. All because of a vampire. All because of Kate.

Taking a deep breath, B washed the shampoo out and reached for the soap. She scrubbed every bit of her body until it was pink, washed it all off, then turned off the shower and stepped out. She grabbed one of the many towels to quickly dry off her body, then her hair, before looking down at the dirty clothes on the floor. The thought of putting them on, after she was finally, finally, clean, was beyond horrible to her.

Hesitating, B realized she had no choice, and crept towards the door as she wrapped the towel around her body. She unlocked and opened the door just enough so she could peer around it.

"Kate?" she asked, already trying not to blush.

"Yeah, Kitten?" Kate replied in a sing song voice that made it even harder for B.

"I...I need clothes. Do you think you could get me some?"

"Of course. I already picked them out." B didn't like that evil tone in Kate's voice, but she didn't really have a choice. Kate walked over, her eyes noticeably getting darker the closer she got, and she held out a shirt just far enough away that B couldn't reach it. A smirk curved Kate's lips as she watched B struggle to stretch out.

"Kate!" B whined. "Can you please give me the clothes?"

"You can always come get them," Kate suggested, unable to mask the hunger in her words. Her mate was naked. Behind that half closed door, B was wearing nothing but a towel. What was wrong with wanting to sneak a peek?

B bit her lip, looking truly distressed, and Kate couldn't help it. She caved and handed over the shirt, to which B let out a breath of relief.

"Thank you. Now, can I have the rest?" she asked as she shrugged the shirt on. The shirt gave her a little more confidence despite the fact that even with pants it wouldn't cover her midriff––these clothes clearly hadn't been made for the Alaskan climate––since clothes were still clothes in B's book.

Sulkily, Kate handed over the pants, then waited for B to come out. Instead, B paused, then risked looking around the door once again.

"Um...there isn't any underwear," she muttered shyly, blushing bright red.

Kate smirked, eyes raking over what little bit she could see. She had been hoping B would say that. "Well, that's the thing. You seem so innocent and all, that I didn't think you would enjoy the type of underwear that Alice had bought for you."

"It can't be that bad," B muttered, but her eyes widened as she saw what Kate had lifted up to show off. It was a lacy see through thing that looked like it would barely cover anything and would be incredibly uncomfortable to wear. "Right. I guess no underwear then." With that, B ducked back into the bathroom to pull on her pants.

Kate grinned, triumphant. She had known that whichever option B had chosen, Kate would have won. Now B was going to be with her, going commando...crap. Desire ignited in her like never before, and Kate clenched her fists to control herself. She wanted now, more than ever, to grab B, kiss her, claim her, make love to her, make her scream and beg and clutch at Kate with unrestrained passion. Shit. Who would have guessed that Kate's own plan would come back to bite her?

B stepped out of the bathroom, and Kate's eyes widened. The girl had been pretty before, but now she was beautiful. And the clothes Kate had gotten her had made her downright sexy. Kate stepped forward and grabbed B's hips, much to the girl's wide eyed confusion, but it was the hint of fear that accompanied that confusion that stopped Kate from doing something like crushing her lips to her mate's.

Holding back a growl of frustration, Kate stepped away and stared. "You look good, Kitten." She was going to need to hunt while B slept, no doubt about it. Drinking a shit ton of blood was the only thing that could give her a little more much needed control. If she didn't get some blood in her and soon, she was definitely going to jump her mate.

"Thanks?" B asked unsurely, trying not to hug herself. The more Kate looked at her like that, the more uncomfortable B became. A part of B was still seriously freaked out, mostly over how comfortable she had become around the vampire. While she wasn't ready to join any vampire fan clubs just yet, she was starting to think that maybe, possibly, not every single vampire was bad. It honestly worried her how quickly she seemed to be changing her mind about the things that had so brutally slaughtered her brothers and parents.

"Uh...what do you want to do?" Kate caught herself licking her lips as her eyes raked over B's form, but thankfully, the girl didn't notice, too caught up in her own thoughts. "Are you still tired? Hungry? Still want to play?"

B glanced at Kate with a troubled look on her face, and Kate wanted to just gather the girl in her arms and make all those worries go away. Instead, she just stood there and waited to hear what her mate wanted.

"No," B said at last, looking into Kate's eyes. "I still have questions, and I want answers."

Kate admired her mate's fire, but still nearly groaned. This torture really needed to end soon, before B ended up doing something, like asking a question that made Kate want to take her. Maybe she could just shut B up with her lips now, and deal with the rest later…

"Will I get them?"

B's voice brought Kate back out of her fantasy, and the vampire sighed. "Yeah. Questions. Ask away."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Questions weren't fired right away. Instead, B and Kate ended up sitting on the bed, both cross legged, facing each other, which wasn't really the smartest move on Kate's part. B plus bed equaled a very well, excitable Kate, and as her control was pushed harder and harder and her imagination got wilder, she was finding less of a reason to hold back.

B anxiously glanced around the room, then turned to Kate. Showing a hint of nervousness, B asked, "Why is there only one bed here?"

Damn, what a question to start off with. Kate's lips quirked into another smirk as she tried to subtly sit on her hands. "So this is one of your all important questions that couldn't wait, hm?" she teased, unable to help herself.

"It wasn't. I was just, you know, wondering, because…" B blushed, and Kate once again felt her desires roaring strong. Could her mate even handle a succubus's sex drive? Kate was seriously considering trying to find out.

No. Bad Kate. Patience. You know, that mythical thing that people have that stops them from rushing things. Pretend you have it.

"Vampires don't sleep. We only need a bed when we engage in certain activities. Want me to show you?" Damn it, Kate hadn't meant to say that. What happened to patience and control?

B blushed an even darker red, and Kate found herself leaning towards her, wanting to devour her, claim her…

"No thanks, I'm good. So, you never actually told me why you want to keep me around," B muttered, glancing away. She was honestly exhausted, even with her nap and her stay in unconsciousness.

Another dangerous subject, one Kate hadn't actually gotten around to talking to Tanya, or anybody about. Kate once again had to fight down her frustrated growl, and while she was struggling to do just that, B risked a glance up at her.

B's breath caught in her throat. Kate's eyes were pitch black, blacker than B had ever seen them. It scared her a little, but she remembered Kate saying that her eyes didn't just signify how thirsty she was. What other reasons were there?

 _Damn it, don't look at me like that!_ Letting out a huff, Kate had to grab her knees tightly to stop her from once again reaching fo B. If this kept up, Kate was going to go insane. Seriously, seriously insane.

"Any other questions? Perhaps one that doesn't involve us in bed?" Kate asked, her voice coming out incredibly husky. With her own words, more images flooded her mind, and she wanted to slam her head against the wall.

"Why are your eyes black right now?" B asked, cocking her head to the side curiously. "You said that there are other reasons your eyes turn black besides your thirst, so…"

 _Lust, plain and simple. Heaps and heaps of lust._ "Actually, I do need to hunt. It has been an eventful day and all." B froze, clearly nervous, and Kate glanced at her. "I don't know how many times I have to tell you that I'm not going to hurt you. You don't even smell like food to me."

"Really?" B's eyes widened, looking like she was very, very surprised to hear that.

"Yup. Next question?" Kate would have been happy to do this all night, if it weren't for how little her control was right then. If she just had more, but honestly, she was at the end of her rope. The whole reason she had gone out to Anchorage in the first place was to shop, then hunt a few animals on the way back, but that plan had gone to hell when she met her mate.

B was silent for a long moment, and Kate was about to ask if something was wrong right as B spoke. "Well if you need to hunt, why don't you?"

Kate grimaced. "You see, Kitten, I––"

"You're afraid I'll run away," B said, realizing it almost immediately after she asked the question.

"Yeah." Kate sighed and examined her mate closely, trying to understand what B was thinking, but B's face was a blank mask. Kate wanted to ask her what was going on in her head, if B would say what was on her mind, but kept quiet, deciding that this would be one of the times she should wait for B to speak.

"I won't." Kate blinked in surprise as B looked up from her hands. "I swear to you, I won't run away. Besides, I have a lot more questions I want answers to."

"Right," Kate said, frowning as she wondered what to do. She wanted to believe her mate more than anything, but if she believed her, only to come back and find B gone, it would crush her. The more time she spent with B, the more she fell for her, and the harder it was getting to imagine life without her.

"Don't look at me like that," B said with a feline growl that did nothing to help cool Kate's libido. "You have no reason to doubt me. I always keep my word."

"I'm not trying to doubt you. It's just, you did run away once already," Kate reminded her, remembering exactly how far and hard Kate had looked for her before being called home. She really didn't want to have to go through that again, plus the shit load of panic that would be added to the initial turmoil.

"You were a vampire trying to drain me dry!" B exclaimed, looking like she was about to attack, she was so angry.

"I wasn't trying to drain you, I was trying to seduce you!" Kate snapped back, and B looked so stunned Kate was afraid she was about to fall backwards off of the bed.

"Seduce me...to drain me?" B asked hesitantly as her mind tried to furiously work through reasons as to why a vampire would want anything sexual when it came to non-vampires.

"No. Just seduce," Kate said, crossing her arms stubbornly over her chest.

"But why? Why would you…" B suddenly came to a huge realization, and she looked at Kate as if she were seeing her for the first time. Kate felt a swell of hope. Did B finally understand? Finally realize that she was Kate's mate? "I've heard about you before. You're one of the succubus sisters!"

Kate blinked, stunned that B would know that much detail about her. "Well, yeah, but––"

"Wait, so you brought me here because you wanted to have sex with me? Did you want some kind of sex slave?" B asked, voice rising with disbelief and panic.

"Yes. Wait, no...I mean, I want to have sex with you, but...damn it. Yes I want sex, but it's not the only thing I want...Fuck, that sounds bad. What I mean is––"

"You wanted a sex slave," B stated, her eyes darkening with anger as she realized the truth. It all made sense now. That was the reason for the single bed, for Kate's suggestive comments. "And so you decided that the little homeless girl would be an easy target."

"No!" Kate snarled, outraged. B couldn't help but flinch as Kate was suddenly on top of her pinning B to the bed, Kate's eyes the darkest of blacks, lips skimmed back from her teeth. For a moment, B was sure that she had pushed the vampire over the edge, but Kate struggled to calm herself. "I care about you, B," she said softly. "That's why I brought you here. That's why I killed those bastards who had you cornered. That's why I was looking all over for you. Because I care about you and I want you."

Care? How stupid did that vampire think B was? Vampires didn't care about anyone but themselves and their cousins. Humans, shifters...they were just food and toys to those damned bloodsuckers. She knew that from first hand experience. How dare Kate try to convince her that she cared about B for any reason other than food and fun?

B met Kate's gaze with a strange, haunting darkness lighting her eyes. In this position, it was all too easy to remember the night the vampires attacked. To remember how the man had promised to let her little brother live if she would shift and run for him to chase, for fun, of course. He had told B that it was all about fun. He didn't actually want to hurt anyone, but his nature called for it. He needed a chase, needed blood, or he could never be satisfied. He had told B this, right after she shifted. Right before he had ripped out her little brother's throat. Right before he screamed at her to run, and run she had.

Kate hovered above B, frozen at the stark hatred in her mate's eyes. A hatred for vampires, but could it be a hatred for her as well? Kate's dead heart broke at the thought. How could B still hate her? They had been getting along moments ago, and now, for B to be looking at her like this…

"Vampires are monsters," B said, reminding herself as much as she was telling Kate. "There's no reason you would ever give a damn about me unless you wanted a toy."

Kate shook with the force of her emotions, emotions she could barely keep a lid on. She hadn't felt so distraught since Sasha had been killed, and so far, she wasn't handling it any better. Taking deep, unnecessary breaths to try and control herself, to keep herself from pressing the issue and demanding to know why it was impossible for her to care for her mate, Kate looked away from B's hard eyes.

"You said you always keep your promises," Kate breathed at last, her voice so low, so dangerous, that B shivered despite herself. "Well I'm holding you to that now. Do not leave this cabin until I come back."

"Fine," B muttered. A gust of wind later, and B found herself alone, staring at the ceiling. Swallowing hard, B curled up on the bed and hugged her knees to her chest. Tears stung her eyes, and she actually felt guilty. But she shouldn't. No matter how nice a vampire was to her, there was always a hidden motive. Kate wasn't being nice to her because she cared. Vampires were cruel, as simple as that.

So why? Why did her heart hurt so much?


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Kate had to have taken down a dozen deer before she had felt it was safe enough to return to the cabin. Instead of worrying and prolonging the moment until she would look into B's hate filled eyes again, Kate rushed home. She'd rather face her mate even when B was at her worst rather than find that B wasn't in the cabin after all.

Kate hadn't even made it back to the cabin before she could hear her Kitten's quick, erratic heartbeat, and she let out a sigh of relief. She slowed down as she approached the cabin, preparing herself for whatever B was going to throw at her. This time, Kate would stay in control, no doubt about it.

With that in mind, Kate entered the cabin, prepared for...she didn't really know. Maybe some more yelling? Instead, she heard pained whimpering that would have made Kate's heart stop if it had been beating.

Without a thought, Kate rushed into the room, ready to face whatever would dare try to hurt her mate, only to realize there was nothing there. She stared at her mate, who was curled up on top of the covers, tear streaks down her cheeks. Kate froze, stunned and worried, as she realized her mate was having a nightmare. "Fuck fuck fuck, what do I do?" Kate hissed as she flitted to her mate's side. Her hands hovered over B's body, not sure where to go. Was she supposed to wake B from her nightmare, or what?

Kate leaned in to place her hand softly on B's shoulder, only to get a surprise when B rolled towards her, one hand grabbing hold of her shirt. "Kate," B mumbled, giving Kate a shock. She froze, once again unsure of what to do, as B weakly tugged on her. "I'm sorry. Don't go. Sorry. You're...mmph..."

At that moment, the world could have been burning, and Kate would have still been the happiest woman alive.

"Yup. I'm yours," Kate whispered softly, slipping her fingers between B's hand and her shirt. Immediately, B let go, only to tighten her grip on Kate's hand instead. Kate grinned and kissed B's knuckles. "Yours forever, Kitten. No matter what you say or do, that fact will never change." She frowned as she thought about the look in B's eyes right before Kate had left. "Although I still have to kill whoever made you feel like that," she grumbled, only to get distracted by her thoughts of murder as her mate tugged on Kate's hand with a weird, sleepy groan.

Unable to stop smiling, Kate picked B up so she could place the girl under the covers and quickly joined her. Her smile got impossibly bigger as B shifted so that she was buried into Kate's body. Damn, could she get used to this. Best. Mate. Ever.

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B slowly came back to wakefulness, once again finding herself surrounded by the scent of warm chocolate and cinnamon. Her eyes fluttered open as she realized that she was curled into what felt like a hard body, and when she looked up, light golden eyes sparkled down at her.

"Aaahhh!" B screamed, pushing Kate so hard she accidentally propelled herself out of bed. She quickly sat up to find Kate in hysterics laughing, clutching at her stomach like B was the funniest thing in the world. "It's not that funny," B snapped, which was enough to make Kate attempt to contain her laughter. As B waited, she remembered last night and how she had left things with the vampire. Immediately, she felt the guilt and pain threatening to crush her. "Um, about last night…"

Kate froze, waiting for the final verdict. She should have realized that just because her Kitten clung to her in her sleep didn't mean that everything was forgiven between them. She waited, staring down at B seriously, preparing herself for whatever B threw at her.

"I, uh...I'm really, really sorry for what I said to you," B mumbled, looking away. "It was wrong of me. It's just, some of what you said kind of scared me, and there's some things in my past that––oomph!"

B slammed into the floor from the force that Kate had launched herself at her mate, and found herself on her back with Kate's limbs wrapped around her, Kate nearly squealing into her neck.

"Damn, was I right! You really are the best. And you were so fucking cute right then too, I just wanted to––ah, fuck, I can't go there yet, can I? But damn, Kitten, do you know how to work me."

"Uh...yeah," was all B could get out, incredibly confused. She expected Kate to be a lot madder. After all, just because B apologized, that didn't mean that Kate had to forgive her. She had said some pretty fucked up things last night, after all. Yet here Kate was, clearly having not just forgiven her, but now gushing over how cute B was? B was right; Kate really was crazy. "Can I get up now?" This was followed by B's stomach growling, making B blush.

"Yup. Now, I'm going to go make my Kitten some breakfast." With that, Kate was gone, leaving B to sigh as she got to her feet.

"Do vampires even know how to cook?" she muttered to herself as she followed Kate out the door, only to realize she was wearing the same clothes she had went to bed in. She walked over to the closet to change, surprised at how many weird pieces of clothing were in there. It looked like this Alice person had stocked up on everything from partying clothes to parade costumes. Thankfully, B managed to find something normal, and was about to put it on when something caught her eye.

"That little liar," B muttered as she pulled out a pair of normal underwear. Grumbling, she put it on, along with her black pants and red shirt, then went to the bathroom. After she got herself ready for the day, she walked into the dining room to confront Kate.

Just as she came into the dining room, Kate appeared with a plateful of food. "There, all done. Here ya go!" Kate said, looking so happy B lost what little fight she had in her.

"Thanks," she said, making Kate's grin widen as she took the eggs and pancakes from the vampire and sat at the table. Kate sat across from her, resting her chin in her hands to watch B intently, making B feel incredibly self conscious. She focused on her food, all too aware of Kate's gaze causing her heart to beat unevenly in her chest as she took her first bite of food.

 _So, vampires can't cook after all,_ B thought to herself as she slowly chewed and swallowed. Still, as long as it was edible, B wouldn't waste a thing. So B continued to dutifully eat all that she could, much to Kate's delight. In fact, Kate felt like preening. The whole cooking thing wasn't so hard after all.

"Did you want to continue asking your questions?" Kate asked, still staring at B adoringly.

B finished chewing, swallowed, then let out a soft sigh. "Yes, but after yesterday, I felt like I shouldn't push."

"Don't worry. You can ask me anything," Kate swore, her mind once again taking a dirty turn. _Maybe soon she'll ask me for help taking off her clothes…_ "But if it makes you feel better, how about for every question you ask, I get to ask one too?"

"Okay," B agreed, but didn't ask a question right away. Instead, she stared down in thought for a long moment. "Well, first of all, who exactly were those other vampires?" B asked, finally bringing herself to meet Kate's gaze.

"There were a lot of vampires there, Kitten. There was my coven, and our coven of cousins. In my coven were my two sisters Tanya and Irina, and my coven mates Carmen and Eleazar. In the other coven there was Carlisle, Esme, Rosalie, Emmett, Alice, and Jasper. They have a bastard named Edward too, but he wasn't there. Maybe I can introduce you to them sometime."

"Maybe," B agreed, not wanting to crush Kate's hopes just yet. A little uneasy about the thought of meeting one, let alone so many other vampires made her nervous. "Now, what's your question?"

"What does B stand for?" Kate asked immediately, without a thought.

"B stands for Bella, which is short for Isabella. It's a nickname of a nickname," B explained.

"Hm...Isabella," Kate purred, sending a strange shiver down B's spine. "That's a beautiful name you have there."

"Uh huh," B mumbled, trying to organize her suddenly scrambled thoughts. But before B could even think up another question, Kate's phone rang.

Frowning, Kate answered it. "What?" she all but snapped, clearly not happy with being interrupted.

"I thought you'd like to know that the Cullens are leaving," B heard a woman tell Kate. "They've also extended an invitation to you and your...B, for when she's comfortable enough to meet them."

"Awesome," Kate said with a grin. "Tell Emmett that we'll be there when B's ready, but by the time we go, I'd already have trained B to beat him in every single video game he owns. Can you tell him that?"

"Yes, Kate, I can. Have fun," the woman said in a dry voice, and then the line went dead.

"That was Tanya," Kate explained, and B nodded, mulling over how normal the conversation seemed. "So, what's next?"

B didn't know why she said it, but she suddenly blurted out, "Can you teach me how to read?"

"Definitely," Kate said, another smile curving her lips. "But only after you answer one more question; why don't you lose your clothes when you shift?"

"What?" B was so startled, she burst out into laughter. "That's what you want to ask me?"

"Hey! Excuse me for being curious!" Kate said with a pout, crossing her arms over her chest as B continued to laugh, although she tried to stifle it.

"If you must know, I don't lose my clothes because my parents taught me how to shift correctly. The shifters who lose their clothes don't know the right way to shift, which requires tapping into a shifter's magic."

"So does that mean you can choose to shift in a way that destroys your clothes?" Kate asked in a hopeful voice. Honestly, Kate didn't know if B losing her clothes would be a good or bad thing. While Kate would have loved to have her mate squirming under her naked after B shifted, it really wouldn't help with her control issues.

"Yeah, but why would I want to destroy my clothes?" B asked, glancing at Kate suspiciously. "It makes no sense."

"Uh...I was just wondering. For, you know, scientific curiosity," Kate mumbled at last, looking away. There was no reason to help B remember that Kate really did want to have sex with her. She wouldn't want to have to deal with another one of B's crazy misunderstandings. "Now, let's get to work on teaching you to read, shall we?"

B blinked at her, startled. "What, now?"

"There's no time like the present," Kate replied cheerfully, grabbing B by the hands and pulling her to her feet so hard B fell right into Kate's body. _I wonder if it's possible to teach like this,_ Kate thought for a moment, then decided not to try and pursue that. For B, reading seemed to be important to her, so she decided that teaching B to read was just as important to Kate as reading was for B.

"But...but…" B couldn't believe it. Were they really doing this? Was Kate really about to just sit her down somewhere and teach her how to read?

"Problem, Isabella?" Kate murmured, tightening her grip on her mate as she gazed at B through half lidded eyes. B blushed and looked away, and Kate couldn't help but smirk at B's reaction. She'd have her Kitten yet. It would just take time.

"No. Uh, let's get to it," B could barely whisper as she averted her eyes from Kate's face. "Teach me how to read."

"You got it, cutie," Kate said with another huge grin, then dragged B back to the bedroom so she could grab a computer from one of the drawers. She sat on the bed as she started the computer up, and while she hoped she wouldn't offend or upset B, she knew she had to start at the very beginning, if only to see where B was at. So she pulled out the ABCs.

Realizing that B hadn't moved, Kate gave B an encouraging, but still flirty smile and patted the place on the bed next to her.

B took a deep breath, then let it out. She couldn't believe it, but she was right. There was at least one good vampire in the world after all, and that vampire...Kate was really going to teach her how to read. Even after all B had done to her.

Feeling tears well in her eyes and an ache in her chest, B climbed onto the bed and settled in next to Kate so she could see the screen. Sensing her mate's tears but knowing better than to mention them aloud, Kate simply wrapped an arm around B and pulled her into the side of her body.

B didn't even flinch.

Author's Note: Hey guys, sorry about how bad this chapter is, but I wanted to give you all another update, and I didn't know how to fix it. I guess that yesterday really tired me out. I swear I'll try to do better on the next one! Thanks again for all of your support!


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

B was incredibly smart, and had learned to read, and well, within two days. Yet as time wore on, B seemed to get more and more irritable. Not frustrated at the rate she was going, but irritable, snappy. Kate had no idea why, and she had no idea about how to make it better.

When a hissing B tore gouges in the wall after one of Kate's suggestive jokes, Kate knew she had to bring it up.

"Nothing. Nothing's wrong," B growled, glaring at her with brown eyes that seemed to glow with fire.

 _Don't get distracted by how hot she looks when she's mad, don't get distracted…_ Kate tried to chant to herself, but still seemed to be doing just as she shouldn't. Then she noticed how B's hands were clenched into tight fists that seemed to be trembling, and her worry for her mate trumped over her desires. "B––"

"Nothing. Is. Wrong," B said, almost snarling. When her lip lifted, Kate saw a flash of fang, clearly sharper and longer than B's normal canine.

Tired of her mate keeping things bottled up, Kate did the one thing that always seemed to work on B. She flashed over, took B's face in her hands, and stared into her eyes as she murmured, "Isabella."

A blush stained B's cheeks as she looked away, hugging herself. "I guess it's being cooped up for so long. I have basically spent over ten years outside, and being inside for so long might be making me act up," B admitted in a low mumble.

"Well why didn't you say so? Let's go hunting!" Kate exclaimed, letting out a breath of relief. She really didn't get why that had been so hard for her mate to say. If B needed to stretch her legs outside, Kate was happy to do so. Besides, Kate really needed to hunt again herself; her control was already wearing thin, and she was once again constantly fighting not to jump her mate, even in B's grumpy state. Especially at night, when B got all up close and personal, cuddling and rubbing against Kate while she was asleep. Which of course didn't help Kate's control problem _at all._ But she would have to be dumb and dead, in the literal sense, to not enjoy every minute of it.

"So then when can we leave?" B asked, letting out a little sigh. She had been so afraid of showing a sign of weakness, of showing any signs of what she needed. Yet once again, Kate had decimated those fears with a simple smile and a few words.

"Right now. We've got nothing better to do, after all. Unless you want to wreck a few more walls?" Kate arched her eyebrows, trying and failing to look disapproving, but B still blushed and ducked her head, aware of the deep gouges only a foot away from her.

"Got it, let's go." B headed for the door, only to stop when Kate grabbed her by the wrist and pull her back.

"Wait a sec there, Kitten," Kate said. Now she was the one staring at the ground, but she couldn't help it. "You said you always keep your promises, right?" B nodded, a confused look on her face. "So can you promise me that you won't try to run away?" Kate couldn't help but feel nervous about that. After all, even though only a few days had passed, B was starting to fill out. She was getting healthier, but also stronger...and Kate feared faster. A day might come where B runs from her, and Kate wouldn't be able to keep up.

She felt a hand touch her face, and opened eyes she hadn't even realized she'd closed to look at B, who looked even more surprised than Kate. Maybe B was finally starting to feel things for her? The hope sparked in Kate's chest, and she smiled softly, almost wistfully, at the thought.

"I promise," B said, never looking away from Kate's eyes, which had, strangely enough, seemed to turn even lighter and warmer than before.

"Good. Now we can go," Kate said, letting out an unnecessary breath in relief. Then an idea came to her once again as B headed for the door. She once again caught B by the wrist and said, "By the way, you might want to strip. Just in case, you know, you make a mistake with your whole magic thingy and ruin your clothes."

B gave her a look that said "like I'd ever" and opened the door. She shifted fluidly, leaving no destroyed clothes behind, and Kate sighed with disappointment.

"It was worth a shot," she mumbled as B, now a gorgeous brown cat, bounded a few feet away before turning and sitting on the ground, clearly waiting for Kate to join her. Despite the disappointment, she smiled and ran after her mate, still unbelievably happy. There were very few things that could make life better than this.

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B's ears twitched as she took notice of a strange sound. Tearing her eyes away from where she had been watching Kate drain her kill, having finished her own with plenty of time to spare––seeing as Kate insisted on taking down the deer for her first––she scanned the area for anything unusual. Finding nothing, B decided to enjoy the forest, but stay on alert.

Kate pulled her mouth from the deer's neck and took a moment to stare at her Kitten, who actually was a kitten––well, technically she was a cat, but B would always be a kitten in her eyes, being all cute and cuddly and shit––just to enjoy her. She couldn't explain how much contentment she felt just watching her mate looking around, and how beautiful B was in cat form.

 _Maybe I can convince her to stay like this for a while,_ Kate mused. _I mean, at least in this form I don't feel an urge to jump or grope her. Fuck, but that would mean I wouldn't get to enjoy seeing her blush._

B's head suddenly snapped to the left, alerting Kate that something was out there. She stood up as she tried to hear what was out there that has made B so stiff and focused, but could hear nothing outside of the usual noises of the forests. If there really was something out there, it would be just her luck to find that B could hear better than her too.

"B, what's going on?" Kate asked, causing B to look back over at her. B shifted back, clearly on edge, and it made Kate want to shock the shit out of whatever had made her even a little nervous.

"I'm not sure, I just thought I heard something," B mumbled, scratching at the back of her head. "But maybe I'm just being paranoid." It would make some kind of twisted sense that she had gotten so used to feeling secure around Kate in their cabin that she had become desensitized to certain dangers, or was now sensing dangers that weren't actually there. For all B knew, she was simply hearing nothing.

"But if you're scared of something, if you think something's out there…" Kate wasn't happy. She couldn't hear anything, but something had clearly spooked her mate, and she wanted to find out what it was.

"Let's just go back to the cabin, okay?" B asked, glancing over her shoulder as if she expected something to come appear from the bushes.

It spoke just how nervous B was to want to go back, especially after she had had so much fun running around––something Kate had seriously enjoyed seeing. Yet just like that, B seemed to have reverted into that scared little cat that Kate had met that first day.

"Okay," Kate said quietly. She didn't even try to make a scaredy cat joke, which she would have done to anyone else. Instead, she just held out her hand, which B took without thought. "C'mon, B, let's go."

B didn't say a word the entire run back. While she had realized this was making Kate worry, she couldn't help it. Something out there had freaked her out, and whether she was right about what was out there or wrong, she still felt like an idiot who was just over reacting. A part of her worried that Kate was going to start thinking less of her, if she didn't already, for all the problems B was practically throwing at her. This, of course, only made her more afraid to talk. She really was an idiot.

Once back in the cabin, B visibly relaxed, which made Kate relax with her. In fact, Kate was feeling pretty damn happy that the cabin was already making B feel so safe. Still, Kate realized that now might be the best time to talk about a few things, once B had calmed down and gotten her mind off of whatever she might have heard outside. Maybe it would even help B feel better in the long run.

"Kate! What are you doing?" B screeched, arms wrapping tight around Kate's neck as Kate suddenly scooped the girl into her arms.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm taking care of my little scaredy cat," Kate teased as she spun B around the living room. "Now, what to do first? Does my little Kitten need a nap before dinner? Or maybe I should just make you take a bath. That meat stench is still clinging to you, and it is rank."

"Fuck you! Kate, put me down! Kate!" Kate just laughed as she all but waltzed the squirming girl into the bedroom, threw her on the bed, and pinned her down.

"Stop being such a brat. I thought that run would help you get over your grumpiness," Kate said with a huge, evil grin. "Perhaps I need to punish you for your attitude, hm? Does that sound like a good idea to you?"

"What are you––Kate!" B screamed and squirmed as Kate started to tickle her mercilessly. Even as B started laughing, gasping for breath, Kate didn't relent.

"Tell me I'm the boss," Kate said as she started to tickle B harder.

"No way, never!" B protested, then started laughing even more.

"Now you have to tell me I'm the boss, _and_ that I'm the sexiest bitch you've ever seen," Kate declared. B tried to roll away, so Kate straddled her, effectively pinning her lower body to the mattress.

"Kate!" B protested, gasping and laughing as she slapped at Kate's hands as Kate continued tickling her.

"That's strike two. Now you have to say that I'm the boss, the sexiest bitch you've ever seen, and that you're––" _mine_ "thirsty for my love."

"What does that even mean?" B all but squealed as Kate started tickling her even more.

"Do you really want there to be a strike three?" Kate asked cockily, giving her mate a breather––because living creatures like B and humans actually needed to breathe––to see if B would give in.

Huffing and puffing, B collapsed on the bed. "Fine." At Kate's arched brow, prompting her to continue, B groaned. "You're the sexiest bitch I've ever seen, the boss, and I'm...thirsty for your love." B shook her head at that last bit, clearly not even sure about what she just said. Still, it was enough for Kate, who let out an excited whoop. Jumping off of the bed, Kate pumped her fists.

"And the victory once again goes to Kate! With this win, she's been crowned the sexiest bitch of a boss on the planet, the title given to her by none other than her opponent, the sexy little Kitten Isabella!"

B blushed a bit as Kate's voice seemed to once again caress her name, but sat up and just laughed some more as Kate did a victory lap. Now all Bella needed to do was figure out her revenge; there was no way she was going to let Kate do that to her without some kind of consequences.

Kate suddenly stopped her celebrating and turned back to B. Putting a hand on each side of B's hips, Kate leaned in. Warm honey colored eyes stared into hers as she murmured, "So, Isabella. With my victory, I believe it's time that you told me why you're so terrified of vampires."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Kate's words made B freeze up, and Kate was incredibly worried she had brought it up too soon as B's eyes widened, her usually dark brown eyes shining with a fearful light. Right as she was about to take back her words and suggest video games instead, B suddenly relaxed. No, she didn't relax; she just seemed to slump in on herself.

"Fine," B said softly as she shifted so she was sitting cross legged on the bed. "I suppose you have a right to know." If only for those horrible things B had said a few days ago.

Sensing how serious a matter this was, Kate sat on the bed next to her and reached for B's hands, only for B to pull them away. While she did it gently, it still felt like B had slapped her. Still, she controlled her emotions, putting a hand on B's thigh instead, which B accepted. Well, Kate wasn't actually sure if B accepted it. She just noticed that B felt what she did, stared at the hand on her thigh for a while, then turned her attention to her own hands, which were left with fingers slightly curled in her lap.

Swallowing hard, B said, "I was only five when they came for us. There were only two of them, and they pretended to be friendly." Kate stiffened just by hearing B's first sentence. Realizing that she really wasn't going to like this story, Kate pulled her hand back. She really didn't want to lose control of her emotions and accidentally hurt her mate. B noticed what she did, and felt a swell of hurt. Why did Kate have to pull away? A thousand horrible reasons, including the thought that Kate might have just decided B didn't deserve Kate's comfort, ran through B's head, and she started to shake. It had been amazing that B hadn't realized it, but Kate's touch had severely comforted her. While B couldn't take Kate's hands out of fear that, so wrapped up in the story, B might accidentally half shift and hurt her, B still wanted Kate's touch, still craved it, even. Recognizing this, B filed the thought away for when she was calmer and could analyze her new feelings clearly, when she wasn't freaking out like now.

 _Shit._ Kate heard B's heartbeat increase, saw the girl starting to shake, and realized how badly B was panicking. Without thought, she scooped the girl up and sat B in her lap, hugging her close as she swore that she damn well was going to control herself, no matter how out of control she got. Just as Kate finished her thought, B seemed to stop shaking.

"You don't have to––"

"They seemed so friendly," B repeated, unable to hear Kate's voice. Her hands clenched into fists as she continued. "They only seemed to want companionship. After all, the world was so big, and they hadn't met any others even half as kind as my family seemed to be. The male kept asking so many questions. It was curiosity, he explained. He had never met cat shifters before. My family was so trusting, and they let them right into our lives. The female seemed to like me. I was so ecstatic at the thought of having a new friend. See, we had isolated ourselves. It was dangerous with so many child shifters to go into normal society. If we had been discovered…" B's eyes darkened as she felt herself falling deeper into the memory. "I had felt so alone. I had no friends, and excluding my mom, I was the only girl in a family, with three brothers and my father. So having a girl who was my friend was just so cool to me. Any question she asked, I answered honestly and openly. If I didn't know something, I'd run to my father to ask him, then scurry right back to tell the female his answer. God, we were all so stupid.

"See, they truly were curious...but only about how much fun we'd be. They learned how fast we were, how strong, how quickly we could shift...so much. Once they learned all of what they needed to know, they started planning a hunt."

Kate inhaled sharply as realization sunk in. "No. Fuck...no, damn it," Kate muttered, eyes darkening with fury and horror for her mate. If these vampires were still alive…

"They were all about instant gratification, and they didn't want to risk us getting away. So without warning, they grabbed my mom and crushed the bones in my mom's legs first. They told my mom to run, and that the male would chase. If my dad wasn't caught, he had to return by sunrise for another hunt, or the female would kill our mother. My dad loved my mom, loved us, so he had no choice. It took three days of constant running and returning before my dad had worn down. He got caught, and...I could hear his screams all the way from the house. My mom started screaming and crying too, and we knew our dad was dead.

"The male came back covered in blood, his eyes even redder than before. First, he killed our mom; she wouldn't stop screaming, and from the mix of pain from losing her mate and her crushed legs, he knew she wouldn't be a good enough hunt. So he killed her, right in front of us...left her body lying there, made us sit right next to her as he looked us over. Then he said it was time for the next hunt, and he chose my oldest brother for his next toy. My brother had to run too, because they still had us. He knew that they were going to kill each and every one of us, that his only chance of survival was to run and never get caught. But he came back that sunrise anyways, and he was so exhausted. He didn't make it for even an hour before I heard his screams, and knew he was dead too."

Tears were streaming down B's cheeks, and never before had Kate felt so helpless, so useless. Wiping away the tears did nothing but momentarily clean B's face, and Kate knew that all the hugging and comforting in the world wasn't enough to help B as she relived the worst nights of her life.

"You see, something happened in that hour that my oldest brother was running. The female had apparently gotten thirsty, and so she turned to look for her next meal. The only options were me and my little brother, because we couldn't exactly give them much entertainment. We were too young, too clumsy. We wouldn't even last a half hour, and the only reason we would last that would be because they were toying with us. It didn't take long before the female chose to drink from me."

Kate let out a roar of pure fury at the thought of anyone trying to hurt her mate, but B didn't so much as flinch in fear. She didn't seem to notice that Kate had tightened her grip on B either, she was so lost in the memories.

"My second older brother, he...he tried to protect me from her. And without thinking, she...she killed him. So when the male returned and found that his last hunt was already dead, he was furious. He grabbed my little brother by the back of the neck, and he was crying, screaming...but I just sat there. I didn't even try to get up. I was still traumatized from seeing my brother get murdered in front of me too. I had his blood all over me, and his body was lying slightly on top of mine. She had just punched through his heart, you see, and the force had knocked him on top of me. So I just sat there, staring into my dead brother's eyes, knowing it had been my fault that he died––"

"It wasn't!" Kate snarled, grabbing B by the chin and forcing the girl to look into her eyes. "It wasn't your fault, it could _never_ be your fault. The only one at fault were those two _monsters_ who had decided to destroy your family, do you understand me?"

B grabbed Kate's wrist and squeezed, looking so incredibly broken that it made Kate cold...and as a vampire, Kate shouldn't have been able to feel cold, but that was the only thing that could describe what she was feeling. It was like her insides were frozen.

Slowly, B moved Kate's hand away, never answering her. Instead, B continued her story. "The male shook my little brother, telling him to shut up, and then he turned to me. He told me I was going to shift and run, and that if I didn't last, he was going to torture my brother to death. I already knew we were all going to die by then, but I still got up and shifted. I thought that, while we were all going to die, it would be better to allow my brother a merciful death, as free of pain as possible." B's face twisted with pain. "I didn't even get a chance. The second I had shifted, the male had grabbed my little brother, my _baby_ brother by the front of his neck, and tore his throat out." Even more tears poured down B's cheeks as she started to sob, hugging herself and rocking as she remembered how helpless she had been to stop it, how she had seen the light leave her little brother's eyes. With her mother, her oldest brother had hidden her in his chest, not letting her see her mom's final moments. Even with her second oldest brother, he had been facing away from her, trying to attack the female, when he had been killed. Even among all that carnage, she hadn't seen someone the moment someone actually _died_ until the male had killed her little brother.

"He told me to run. That they were going to chase me, and if I didn't run, I was going to be the one tortured until my body couldn't handle any more abuse. So I did. I ran, and ran...they caught me so many times, and laughed as they tortured me. I eventually woke up alone, and kept running. I guess...I guess I had been too boring for them, because after one time they had caught me, I never saw them again. I hadn't even been worth killing...and selfishly, I was glad. I wanted to live, even though my entire family didn't get to."

B was suddenly aware of how tightly Kate was hugging her, and how hard the vampire was trembling. "It wasn't selfish. It wasn't wrong for you to want to live. If anything...your family would want you to. They would want you to live, be happy, have a _life_. You deserve to live, B." If anyone was selfish, it was Kate. It was Kate, for being so happy that B had been the one to live instead of one of the others. So. Fucking. Happy.

She was still going to murder those vampires. She'd see how they'd like getting tortured to death.

After calming herself down and stopping her tears––something B had gotten very good at doing over the years––she looked up, only to find that Kate's eyes were pitch black despite having hunted only an hour ago at most. B shivered at the dark, blank look in Kate's eyes, and hesitantly reached up to touch Kate's cheek.

"Kate?" B's whisper brought Kate back to the present, and she loosened her hold on her mate.

"I'm sorry, I just...it got to me," Kate explained. She pulled B closer, burying her face in B's hair almost as if she was the one in need of comfort, which made her sick with herself. After all, B was the one who was hurting the most. "I need to calm down. I'm sorry, but...do you think we could stay like this for a little while?"

Little did Kate know how much it meant to B seeing someone else so upset on her behalf. Kate didn't even know how much she was helping simply by holding B like she was. "Of course," B murmured, her throat tightening. She managed to turn herself around so she could wrap her arms and legs around Kate's body. As Kate was inhaling B's scent, trying to calm herself down, B did the same, cuddling into Kate's body and resting her forehead against the side of B's neck.

While it was true Kate's body was cold, B had never felt so warm.

Author's Note: Okay, it's official. While this chapter is kinda short, I'm still fucking awesome for posting two chapters in such a short amount of time. And on a Monday, no less. So thanks to all those who keep urging me to write, and hope you all enjoy.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Neither B or Kate was sure about how long they stayed like that, holding each other, but it didn't really matter. Both enjoyed the comfort, the calming presence of the other, the way they felt when they were in each other's arms.

 _Really, what is going on with me?_ B thought. While she figured anyone would warm up, and even come to like and trust someone after all she had been through with Kate, wasn't she warming up to the vampire a little too fast? Not to mention that B was starting to suspect that it wasn't just _like_ that had B seeking out comfort from the vampire like she had been doing. Something was seriously going on inside of B, and not only didn't have any control over it, but she didn't even really know what it was that was going on in the first place.

"Just so you know, nobody in my family is like that. If they knew your story, they'd be as upset as I am," Kate muttered into the side of B's neck, making B shiver, although not from fear. "I understand why you were scared of vampires, why you're still scared of them, but you have nothing to fear from my coven, okay? You're safe here. And if those vampires ever show their faces around here…" Kate didn't need to finish the dark thought for B to understand what Kate was saying. Kate also couldn't have said anything else to B that would have made her feel better than that last sentence.

B opened her mouth to say she might be willing to meet this coven of Kate's soon, but her growling stomach interrupted her. She pulled back to glare down at it as Kate burst out laughing. Who would have guessed that her stomach had actually gotten spoiled, even with Kate's disgusting food.

"I guess all of that craziness wasted your energy, huh? Let me make you something to eat," Kate said, eyes sparkling at the prospect of cooking her mate another meal.

 _I really need to learn how to cook,_ B thought as she moved to get up so Kate could go cook, only to find herself getting scooped up instead.

"Kate!" B groaned in exasperation, thumping Kate lightly on the shoulder as the vampire stood, still holding B in her arms.

"Is there a problem, Isabella?" Kate purred, giving B a playful but sexy smile. The combination silenced B, and she looked away with a deep blush, unable to do anything else. Kate let out a laugh at B's reaction and proceeded to carry her to the kitchen, depositing the brunette into a seat at the table. Immediately, B found herself missing the feel of Kate's body.

With that realization, B's eyes snapped wide. _Holy fuck, I'm attracted to her!_ B thought, beyond stunned at the realization. She almost jumped out of her seat with the power of her near freak out, but stopped when Kate glanced over at her.

"You okay?" Kate asked, having heard her mate's increased heartbeat and the uneven thumping of the chair legs as B nearly jumped to her feet.

No. No way was B going to give Kate any sign that B was attracted to her. If she did, Kate would be all over that, and B had no idea what she'd do then. She didn't even know if she could handle a Kate who was armed with not just her cockiness but also the dangerous knowledge of B's feelings.

So B took a deep breath, settled back in her seat, and said, "Yeah, I'm okay. Well, as okay as I can be, given...you know."

Kate nodded somberly before focusing back on her task. B could smell something was burning, but Kate seemed too happy to be cooking that B didn't have the heart to point it out to her.

 _At least it wouldn't be undercooked and poisonous,_ B reasoned as she had to once again psych herself up for another of Kate's meals. Still...maybe she could convince Kate at some point in the near future to buy some simple things from the store in the near future. Simple things like the meats and cheeses B had stolen when she had truly gotten desperate. After all, who could mess up a sandwich?

The food was placed in front of B, and once again, Kate sat across from her, watching with unconcealed excitement as she waited for B to eat another one of her meals. B stared at it for a second, unable to even understand what she was being fed, but picked up a fork, stabbed into some strange crumbly stuff, and brought it to her mouth.

"Mm," B said with a nod, making Kate brighten up even further. Damn it, she was never going to be able to tell Kate she couldn't cook, not when Kate kept giving her looks like that. Now that she thought about it, her worry about hurting Kate's feelings or even making her a little less happy once again pointed back to B's attraction for her. It wasn't just lust that made her want Kate, but a romantic attraction too. B was so fucking fucked it wasn't even funny.

"Hey...how about we take it easy for a few more days?" Kate spoke suddenly, looking at her with compassionate eyes that made it even harder for B to ignore the ache in her chest. "I mean, you've been through enough. We can just relax around here, go for runs and hunts...normal stuff."

B snorted at what Kate classified as normal, but grinned. "Sounds good. I really would like to work on my reading." While B was quite happy to be able to read everyday things and even books now, she wasn't at as high a level as she wished. There were still words she didn't understand, and while Kate assured her that was natural, having some trouble with some of the words herself, B never wanted to be hindered by words again.

"What is with you and books?" Kate groaned, flopping back in her chair comically, her generous chest thrusting upwards in a way that drew B's eyes. _Damn it, B, behave!_ she scolded herself. She really couldn't believe that suddenly realizing that she was attracted to Kate had turned her into an ogling idiot.

Keeping her eyes on the plate in front of her, she said, "It's fun. Now that I can read...it's like whole new worlds have opened up to me. It's beyond amazing."

"Cool," Kate said, not sure what else she _should_ say. While reading had done nothing but make Kate feel bored, seeing her mate so happy about something made her feel way too happy about books despite her personal opinion. "But fine. If you want to read, then you've also got to do something I like. For instance, I really need to introduce you to video games."

"How about you introduce me to your family instead?" B suggested, catching Kate completely off guard.

"You hate something you haven't even tried that much?" Kate asked, completely stunned that B would suggest something like that, especially so soon after revealing her gruesome story.

"No, I just want to meet them...to see if what you told me about them were true," B said softly. The moment her eyes met Kate's, she found herself reaching out to place her hand on top of the vampire's almost automatically. She realized what she was doing when her hand was already almost there and jerked it back.

Of course, Kate had seen the entire move, and cocked her head curiously. While she was more than excited to show B her family, she was also confused about the way B was acting. They had held each other for hours only a little while ago, and now it was almost as if B was scared of touching her again.

"So, are you going to call your family or not?" B asked, quirking an eyebrow when Kate just stared at her.

"What, now?" Kate asked, even more surprised than she had been a moment ago.

B shrugged. "No time like the present." The other reason she was rushing this, of course, was to figure out her feelings. Kate had said she had two sisters, and if they really were as nice as Kate, then B wanted to figure out if she was attracted to them as well.

"Okay. Yeah, I'll do it now." Kate reached for her pocket where her phone was, but her excitement had gotten the better of her. The second her hand closed around the phone, it started to sizzle and pop as Kate's electric current fried it. B's eyes widened and she scrambled back as Kate cursed. More concerned about her mate's fear then the destroyed electronic, Kate tossed the phone across the room without another look where, with one last sizzle and pop, it died.

"What...what…?" B asked, completely freaked out.

"Sorry, Kitten, that was my fault. I got too excited," Kate tried to explain as she walked over. In that moment that she had let down her guard, her powers had gotten the best of her, which Kate found ironic. After all, no matter how much she let down her guard around B, instinctively her powers wouldn't activate. Her entire being knew without needing to be told not to harm her mate. She had gotten so used to not having to worry about her ability that she had fried her phone. "Ya see, some vampires are born with gifts," Kate tried to explain, scratching her head sheepishly. "Mine is this ability that, well, I have this electric current running through my body. It lets me electrocute people, and things. Not you, though!" Kate hurried to add. "My power could never hurt you."

"Why?" B asked as she warily straightened from her defensive crouch. Kate had to hide a smile as she realized B was staring more at the phone than her, but that smile disappeared as she realized she would have to explain to B why her powers automatically wouldn't harm her. She struggled for a moment, then came to the simplest explanation.

"Because I care about you," Kate said, and that was that. Or so Kate thought, until she was distracted by B's blush. Damn, B always looked so adorable like that… Kate swept the girl up in a hug unthinkingly, and was once again pleased beyond explanation as her little mate didn't even stiffen in fear of being electrocuted. She did, however, blush even harder.

"So how are you going to talk to your family now?" B asked hurriedly, trying to get Kate's eyes off of her face.

At that, Kate frowned. "I guess...I guess I'd have to go and tell them in person. But I can't just show up at the house with you…" she mumbled as she set B down, clearly troubled. It wasn't that Kate was worried that something bad would happen if she did, she just wanted to make a good impression, and she wasn't sure what her sisters would be doing if they arrived at the wrong time.

"So go see them. I'll wait here," B said, like it was the simplest solution in the world.

For a moment, Kate stared at B in shock. Really? How could B sound so unconcerned? Did B not realize that that would mean Kate would have to leave B alone? _Again?_

Obviously B did realize it, otherwise she wouldn't be suggesting it, but she didn't seem to care.

"Just go already, will you?" B said, actually starting to push Kate out the door. She knew she was acting a little too desperate, but she couldn't help herself. She needed to see where exactly this attraction was stemming from.

Apparently, Kate was going to torment her a little more, since she dug her heels into the floor. While B could still push her, she really wasn't getting Kate anywhere, and it frustrated her. In the meantime, a part of Kate's mind that wasn't so focused on the thought of leaving her mate was wondering about how strong B was getting.

"Come on. Go," B tried to insist, pushing a little more.

"But…" Kate started hesitantly, making B scowl.

Kate's hesitant feelings about leaving got to B, and B angrily stomped around to face Kate, crossing her arms across her chest. "You don't still think I'm going to run away when you leave, do you?" Bella demanded in a low feline growl, partially distracting Kate from the problem at hand.

 _Shit, she's sexy when she's angry._ Shaking herself out of her hot stupor, Kate held up her hands in a placating manner. "No. No no no, not at all, I swear! I just don't like leaving you alone."

Sensing the truth to Kate's words, B rolled her eyes, rocking back on the balls of her feet, although her arms were still crossed over her chest and now she had a glower on her face as well. "Are you serious? You don't have to babysit me, you know. I'm perfectly fine entertaining myself."

"That's not the problem. I just hate it when you're not around, is all," Kate protested, struggling to find a good way of explaining her complicated emotions without outright saying " _It's incredibly hard to push past my vampiric instincts which currently revolves around needing to claim you, protect you, and keep you close."_

Clearly Kate didn't do a good job, because B shot her a look that questioned if her mental age really was above that of a young child. "I think you can survive an hour or two without me," B told Kate dryly.

Oh no. If Kate had it her way, she would only take a half hour top. Deciding that the only way to do this without making B question her sanity was to run as fast as inhumanly possible, tell her coven that they were coming over, then running, just as inhumanly fast, all the way back.

"Fine, but I'll be back in under an hour. Just...try not to hurt yourself," Kate said, taking one last breath before she rushed off just as B started yelling that she wasn't some weak kitten who couldn't take care of herself.

Kate really did push herself, and while she couldn't get tired, she pushed herself so hard she felt the burn in the back of her throat get just a little bit longer. Kate knew that she was being irrational, but she couldn't help herself. So many things could happen when she was gone. What if B somehow managed to hurt herself? What if a storm hit? What if the cell phone Kate had fried blew up? What if B got hungry?

So she pushed herself, uncaring of the burn, until she came into eyesight of the giant Denali mansion. "B's ready to meet you all, so we're going to be over in an hour or so! Be prepared and don't fucking scare her!" Kate shouted as she skidded to a stop, then turned around to run back to the cabin as.

Even as she left the Denali house behind, she heard Irina say, "Wait, what?"

"Hello to you too," Tanya added loudly in a dry voice. "Glad to see things are going well."

The last thing Kate heard was Carmen murmuring about how she had better start cooking and Eleazar offering to clean the house up as he laughed, and then Kate was out of hearing range. She didn't stop until she was back at the cabin, nearly kicking the door down, prepared to face down whatever had happened to her mate.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

B was on the couch, covered in a blanket, with a book in hand. She wasn't in danger, she wasn't hurt, her heart beat wasn't even elevated.

Of course nothing had happened to B while she was away. The chance of anything happening to her mate in such a small amount of time was extremely low. But try telling that to Kate's instincts.

B looked up from her book and arched her eyebrows at Kate. "Are you okay?" B asked, noticing how anxious Kate looked.

"Uh, yeah, fine. I said we'd be over there in an hour." Kate wanted to rush B and pull the girl into her arms, to inhale her scent and calm down her raging instincts with the knowledge that B was okay. She would have done it, too, if B hadn't chosen that moment to stand up.

"Okay, good. Do I look okay?" B asked, suddenly nervous as she realized how close she was coming to meeting the rest of Kate's coven. Ironically enough, it wasn't a fear of meeting four vampires that had B scared, but the prospect of meeting Kate's family. She really didn't know what was going on with her emotions. Was potentially crushing on Kate what made B feel so out of control?

"Ah...um…" Kate couldn't help but stare. She really couldn't. B had changed into black leather pants, a dark red sleeveless shirt with a plunging neckline that showed off quite a bit of cleavage, and black boots with a heel to them. "That outfit…"

"Yeah. I looked up on good clothes to wear for meeting new people on the computer. Something like this came up, so…" B had felt pretty confident, but with that unreadable dark look in her eyes, now she wasn't so sure.

Shit. What kind of people was B supposed to meet in that? Kate had to swallow hard as she fought off a dangerously powerful wave of lust. She was nearly shaking with her desire as she imagined slipping a hand into the plunging neckline of her shirt to grab her breast, maybe lift B into the air and devour her mate's mouth with her own, eventually peeling off her pants to feel those bare legs wrapping around Kate's hips...no, don't go there Kate. If she would fall any further into her fantasies she might try to act on them, and then B might hate her forever. While she tried to tell herself this, her instincts on the other hand were going crazy. Claiming, devouring, fucking…

"Kate?" B cocked her head to the side, feeling strangely hot as Kate continued to stare at her, her eyes getting darker...and, B realized, hungrier. Some deeply buried instincts awoke inside of B as her body got hotter, and she felt herself getting a little wet...god, B's attraction had gotten out of control.

Desire, Kate could smell it. Finally, finally, after so long! Her mate wanted her! Without a thought, half crazed from her own need, Kate pounced, sending them both crashing to the floor. She moved in for the kiss that she had wanted, _craved_ , so fucking badly…only to be brought up short as B put a hand between their faces, making Kate kiss her palm instead.

"What do you think you're doing?" B asked in a scarily calm voice, snapped out of her own near hypnotic state that Kate's dark eyes had caused.

"Kissing you?" Kate said, her words coming out unsurely. The desire was still there between them, incredibly strong, but this wasn't exactly how someone ready to give in to their lust and be ravaged tended to act. In fact, if Kate didn't still smell her Kitten's desire, she would have thought her fantasies had made her hallucinate.

"Why do you think that's okay?" B asked in the same tone of voice, her face never giving away a hint of expression.

"Because you want me. I can smell it," Kate murmured. Thinking that an explanation was all Kate needed to clear the air, she leaned in for another kiss, only to once again be blocked by B's hand.

"Look, Kate," B said with a sigh, pushing Kate back enough so she could prop herself up on her elbows. "You really need to work on your impulse control." Kate opened her mouth to protest, but B talked right over her. "You need to understand. You're the first, and currently only, nice vampire I met, you're the closest person to me in the world right now, and you're beyond gorgeous. It's only natural that I'd be attracted to you." Kate smirked at that, then realized that B wasn't done. "But you're also a succubus and a vampire. The only one who has a chance of satisfying you is your mate, and I really don't want our relationship to disintegrate because neither of us could control our baser instincts. Got it?"

"But...but…" Kate stared down at B, at _her mate,_ completely lost. She _had_ to tell B who she was to Kate, but now Kate realized she had lost her chance. Her Kitten would just think that Kate was making an excuse to get into her pants. But she had no idea when another chance would even appear again. What was Kate supposed to do, wait for someone to slip up and tell B she's Kate's mate? No, because then B would kill her for not telling her herself.

Once again, Kate was fucked.

"So, can we just put this behind us? Pretend it didn't happen?" B asked, pushing at Kate a little more. B's body practically screamed for her to drag Kate back down and give in, but this was the happiest B had ever been. While they hadn't known each other for long, Kate was still her friend, the only friend she ever had. And while a part of B knew how easy it would be to fall for Kate, she also knew that no matter how much Kate loved her back, B would still be dropped when Kate found her mate. "Kate." B pushed at the frozen vampire, trying to get her to move. B started to worry that something had happened while she had been so deep in thought, because for the first time, Kate's eyes were blank, completely void of emotion. "Kate…" Without thinking, B reached out to place a hand on Kate's cheek, the skin of her palm feeling strangely warm despite Kate's skin being cold. Realizing what she was doing, B jerked her hand away.

 _Stupid, B! Stupid!_ she all but yelled at herself, cradling the hand that had touched Kate to her chest. _What do you think you're doing? After you just told her that we couldn't do anything, too!_ Yet even as her brain told her she was doing the right thing in the long run, her heart felt like it was decaying in the most painful way possible inside of her chest. Tears sprung to her eyes, and she had to fight to keep them away.

Kate had come back from wherever she had gone to inside of her head, just in time to see B fight back her tears. She nearly sighed; she was such an idiot. Some part of her had known B wasn't ready, had known it would have been smarter to talk about them being mated first, and now she had fucked it all up simply because her lust had gotten the better of her.

Standing up, Kate grabbed B under the armpits and helped the smaller girl to her feet. B was still clearly upset, which made Kate feel like the biggest asshole of all time. Desperate to make B feel better, Kate blurted, "How about we just forget about this whole thing, okay? Like it never happened." Yeah, like Kate could forget being rejected by her mate, even if B still clearly didn't know what was going on. Kate's entire being felt hollow.

B almost let out a bitter laugh, but managed to hold it back. Like she could forget what had just happened. She had never felt so much pain over anything before, but now it was hard to even look at Kate without feeling like a red hot poker was stabbing her in the heart. Still, she nodded and mumbled, "Sure."

There was a long, awkward pause, where neither girl knew what to say or do, or how to fix what had just happened between them. It just got longer and more painful as they continued to stand there, neither moving, speaking, or even meeting each other's eyes. Each second made the entire incident that much worse, to the point B worried that everything was still over between them. After all, she still remembered when Kate had admitted to wanting to have sex with her...while there seemed to be a friendship between them, maybe sex was still the deciding factor? But B couldn't do it. She couldn't give Kate her heart. Because when Kate finally met her mate and cast her aside, B knew she wouldn't know how to go on. While they hadn't known each other for that long, Kate had become her world. Without Kate, B knew there would forever be an ache in her chest no matter how many years passed.

"Do you not want me to meet your family anymore?" B asked hesitantly, trying to find out just how much was affected by B and Kate's...whatever it was.

At that, Kate jerked her head up to look at B in disbelief. "What? Of course I still want you to meet them!" she exclaimed. "I just...you know what? Let's go." Kate reached out to grab B's hand without thinking but hesitated. B felt her heart crumble as Kate's hand fell between them instead of taking hers.

 _Stop it. You did this to yourself, to Kate,_ B thought viciously. But unsurprisingly, her thoughts didn't make her feel any better.

"Yeah," B muttered, trying to shove her hands into her pockets, only to realize that the leather pants didn't have any. No longer knowing what to do with her hands, B let them stay limply at her sides. She had never felt so lost in her life. "Let's go."

Author's Note: I know I'm a horrible person, but this needed to be done. I swear. Also, my next chapter is going to be longer than usual to fit everything in, so I'm not sure when I'll have it up. Sorry!


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Note: Okay, I know I said the next chapter was going to be really long, but when I started writing it, I realized exactly how long it had gotten, and I wasn't even half way finished. So I went back, rewrote some things so I could create a stopping point, and finished Chapter 13 much earlier than planned. I might have to split the chapter I'm still writing again, so who knows if I'll be done in time to post again today, tomorrow, the day after... In other words, I'm a miracle worker to have even gotten to writing this at all, I've been so busy. So yay to that, and thanks for reading.**

Chapter 13

Things were quiet and somber between them for only a few moments, before Kate froze and stared at B with horror.

"What? What is it?" B asked anxiously.

But before all the terrifying possibilities could flash through her head, Kate shouted, "Look at what you're wearing! Holy fuckballs, you need a coat!"

B actually had to replay the words over in her head, and she was still stunned. "What?"

"You're only wearing that shirt, and it must be freezing. Shit, I'm such a fucking idiot, I forgot that you living people can get cold. Come on, we have to go back!" It was only when Kate turned around and started trudging back the way that they had come that B realized she was serious.

"Wait, Kate, I'm not cold! I'm fine!" B shouted after her, not willing to start walking towards her as she spoke; she felt like she would be encouraging Kate's crazy.

"Really?" Kate asked, a look of clear suspicion on her face. "Because crossed arms are one of the things people do when they get cold. I read that in a book somewhere."

"My arms are just crossed because…" _I don't know what to do with my hands anymore._ Yeah, like B was actually going to say that out loud.

"Because you're cold," Kate finished triumphantly. "Don't even try to deny it; it's below freezing right now." Kate grabbed her hand and started to pull her back to the cabin. "Come on, Kitten, we have to hurry. I don't want you to get frostbite."

Realizing Kate was coming from a place of panicked concern, B knew it would be better to just give in. Besides, at least they were holding hands again. She could pretend things were normal again.

At her own thought, B frowned. Was holding hands really normal?

B was quickly distracted by her thoughts as she was pulled inside the house and Kate dropped her hand before flashing out of the room. She came back a few seconds later with the puffiest, biggest coat B could imagine.

"You've got to be kidding me," B muttered when Kate presented the monstrosity to her.

"This'll definitely keep you warm," Kate announced proudly. Before B could try to fight her about wearing that, Kate was already putting it on her and zipping it up. Once Kate was done, B nearly fell over. She felt like a fucking roly poly. She was sure that if she allowed herself to fall over, B would just starting rolling along until she ran into a tree or something else that could stop her. Worst of all, she could barely move.

"Alright!" Kate said, clearly relieved that B was safe from the cold. "Now we can go, yeah?"

"Yeah," B mumbled, although now she was trying not to blush. She wasn't sure what kind of impression she'd make on Kate's family like this, but she doubted it would be a good one.

Once again, B was led outside, and once again, they fell into an awkward silence. Kate kept looking at B and then looking away, although B didn't catch her doing it. Really, Kate had no idea what to do. She still felt empty and aching, and the only thing that had seemed to make a difference was when her mate's hand had been in hers. A hand she probably wouldn't be able to continue to take so casually anymore because of her fuck up. A fuck up she made, all because of a stupid outfit that happened to look gorgeous on her mate.

An outfit her entire family, including her two gorgeous, unmated, succubus sisters, would get to see B in…

Kate shoved back the instinctive anger that flared at the thought of her unmarked mate looking even sexier than usual in front of her sisters. They weren't the enemy; if anything, they might be able to help Kate find a way back into B's good graces, and maybe try to drop the whole mate thing in a way that wouldn't make B flip out.

The vampire risked another glance at her mate, only to frown when she realized how alert B suddenly was, eyes scanning the surrounding area.

 _There it was,_ B thought as she stopped walking. _That fucking noise again._ Why couldn't she place it? It was natural, yet unnatural...possibly belonging to a living creature, but possibly not. But could a sound like that really exist, or was B being paranoid again?

"What is it?" Kate murmured, moving closer to her mate protectively.

Deciding she was making a big deal out of nothing––she was probably imagining the sound, after all––B shook her head. "It's nothing."

It didn't feel like nothing to Kate. Something had spooked her mate again. "Are you sure?" Kate asked, tearing her eyes away from her mate so she could scan the area around them. She was never one to dismiss a possible threat no matter how carefree she appeared, and something that worried her mate had her even more on edge.

"Yeah. Let's just keep going," B said with a dismissive shake of her head. She tried to keep walking, but with her distracted thoughts, didn't remember how off balance she was. A branch snagging her coat was all the extra help she needed to fall face first into a patch of snow.

Unable to help herself, Kate burst out laughing. It was just such an adorable––and unusual, since B was usually so graceful––thing to happen. And now Kate had it imprinted forever in her perfect vampiric memory.

"Here," Kate said, eyes still alight with laughter as she held out her hand. When B glared up at her, it gave the image of a kitten trying to be ferocious, and that only made Kate start laughing harder.

Without thinking about the consequences, B grabbed Kate by the ankle and pulled, causing the vampire to fall to the ground right in the same snow pile B was in. Now she was laughing, and Kate, after getting over her initial surprise, was laughing with her. Their eyes met, and it was like the awkward near-kiss incident never happened.

 _She really does care about me, doesn't she?_ B thought with a sense of wonder. _Kate truly cares, not like the fake friendliness of those red eyed vampires, but...she cares about me, she sees me. When I look into her eyes, I see such honesty and emotion. I could never imagine Kate hiding anything from me, no matter how bad it is._

Kate flipped to her feet in a way that made B stare, then held out her hand. This time, B took it and allowed Kate to help her to her feet.

"Thanks," B whispered. She wasn't just talking about that moment, however hard it might have been for B to roll to her feet in that cursed coat. She was thanking Kate for every little thing, good and bad, comforting and scary, since the moment Kate had come into B's life.

"Anytime," Kate said with a strange smile that confused B while at the same time it made B's stomach flop. Kate took a step closer and added in a soft murmur, "I'll always be here, Kitten. No matter what."

B felt her body alight with electricity, and vaguely wondered if it was Kate's gift at work, it was that strong...although nothing hurt. She continued to stare into Kate's eyes, searching for something, although even B herself didn't know. They continued to stand there, staring into each other's eyes, hands still clasped, until something interrupted them.

"Hey," a male's voice spoke up suddenly, making B jump in fright––right into Kate's arms. Kate had a similar reaction, pulling B into her body and whirling on the intruder with a snarl.

It was then that Kate realized that the intruder was none other than a sheepish looking Eleazar, who looked like he'd rather be anywhere but there.

"Sorry to interrupt. You two were just standing out here so long that Carmen sent me to see what was going on," Eleazar said in his Spanish accent, keeping his eyes averted from both Kate and her mate in case Kate's vampiric nature still saw him as a threat. He really didn't feel like getting shocked at the moment.

"Oh," Kate said as she relaxed. B glanced up at Kate, trying to figure out why Kate was no longer in protective mode. Realizing that B was confused and that Eleazar was waiting patiently for what was obviously the next step, Kate started the introductions. "B, this is Eleazar, he's part of my coven. Eleazar, this is my...B."

Eleazar nearly frowned at the way Kate tripped on her words, but decided it probably wouldn't be a good idea to mention it. So he gave B a reassuring, non threatening smile, making sure not to show any teeth.

"It's nice to finally meet you, B. I'm sure Kate would have told me much about you, if she had bothered to call," Eleazar said, his smile turning into a small grin when he B genuinely smiled back at him, her eyes glittering.

Kate let out a soft growl at the small, teasing jab, but both Eleazar and B ignored it.

"It's nice to meet you too. I'm sure Kate would have called eventually, but she blew her phone up," B stated bluntly, making Eleazar burst out into laughter.

"Is that so?" Eleazar said, still laughing at B's comment.

"No," B deadpanned. "But I figured it would be a bit kinder to give an excuse. But if it makes you feel any better, Kate did blow up her phone...less than two hours ago."

"So that's why she ran to the house instead of calling." Once again, Eleazar started to laugh, and Kate grumbled in sulky annoyance at being the one made fun of. B couldn't help but smile at the Spanish vampire. If someone had told her even two weeks ago that B would be joking around with a vampire, B would have laughed in their face. If Kate had said B would be joking around or even at ease with another vampire so much as yesterday, B would have laughed in her face too. Yet now, here she was, doing just that.

"Hello? Didn't you come to retrieve us? How about we get going already," Kate said, feeling a strange mix of pride for her mate and possessive jealousy that would have made her head hurt if she hadn't been a vampire.

"Of course," Eleazar said, making a poor attempt to pull himself together. "I'll escort you to the house."

"I know where my own damn house is, we don't need a fucking escort like the Queen of England," Kate muttered to herself as she crossed her arms over her chest. B gave her a strange look, because even though Kate wasn't actually making any sense, she was clearly fact, her face looked so similar to her little brother's right before he threw a tantrum that B had to smile.

As soon as B had the thought, her heart squeezed. She hadn't realized she had been doing it, but she had started to be able to think about her family without the agonizing pain that usually accompanied it more and more as B spent more time with Kate. Maybe she was finally starting to heal.

"Here we are," Eleazar said as they came into the clearing that served as the backyard of the house, getting another grumbled complaint from Kate.

B couldn't help but gape. The house itself was about three stories high, but was also very long. It was completely made of stone and wood, looking incredibly natural, and made the cabin B had been staying in, which B had thought was actually a little big, look like a birdhouse in comparison.

"Just wait until you see the inside," Eleazar said with a smile at the young cat, making B smile once again. Kate was able to grin herself at B's reaction, but then she frowned again when Carmen came out of the front door, looking ready to sweep B up in a hug. It was only Kate stepping between them with a low growl that made her pause.

"Oh, of course. I'm sorry Kate, B." Carmen took a step back with a huge smile, still looking like she wanted to hug B but was now restraining herself. "It's so great to see you both. My name is Carmen."

B blinked, taken aback by the woman. The friendliness, the warmth in the vampire's eyes, she almost...she almost felt like B's mother. Shaking that thought off, B took a step around Kate's body. "Hi," was all she could think to get out. Where had her earlier wit gone? She had absolutely no idea. Still, despite her basically saying nothing, Carmen still smiled like B had given her an amazing gift.

Eleazar moving to Carmen's side was what distracted B next. She saw Carmen hold out her hand, and as Eleazar took it, she had a whole different kind of smile for her mate. Her eyes held so much love and adoration that it made B's heart ache. It was the kind of look her mother and father had shared back when they were alive.

That brought B's mind back to Kate, and she felt a stab of pain in her chest. Not wanting to linger on the reason for her pain, B brought her eyes to the ground and thought about whatever was going to happen next. It was obvious she would be going into the house and meeting Kate's two sisters, but since B didn't want to start dredging up the pain again, she decided to think really, _really_ hard about what they'd be like, how they felt about her basically being forced into their lives, if they'd like her...basically freaking the shit out of herself.

Sensing B's emotions getting out of control, Kate took B's hand, and B clutched at it like a lifeline. She almost moved into Kate's body for further comfort, but had to remind herself that really wouldn't be a good idea. So instead, she wrapped both of her arms around Kate's and held on as tight as she could.

Fuck. Kate tried not to stiffen. It was so much harder to contain herself without reacting physically, but still, Kate somehow managed to do it. She forced herself to take normal breaths and counted them, but she still couldn't get her mind off of B. Or, more specifically, the way B's full chest pressed against her arm. The coat should have offered Kate some protection from the feeling, but if this was the best it could do, the coat fucking sucked. Kate could still feel B's chest, most likely because of how tightly B was clutching at her, and if Kate hadn't been rejected just a few hours before, she wouldn't have been able to stop herself from kissing B now.

Alerted to the two's predicament by B's crazily beating heartbeat, the Spanish couple decided to take pity on the two. Carmen looked away from her mate, and her smile was all about the fact that Kate had finally found happiness, no matter how much she seemed to be restraining herself. "Let's go inside. Tanya and Irina are dying to meet you."

B glanced up at Kate, looking for reassurance that everything was going to turn out okay. Realizing where B's worries stemmed from, Kate forced a smile on her face.

"Don't worry. They're going to love you." Although they better not love you too much, Kate added darkly as she looked towards Carmen and Eleazar for more reassurances.

"We've been waiting to meet you," Eleazar said with a small grin. "Tanya and Irina have already thought up some gifts that they could give you, and Carmen has been cooking since she learned you were going to be coming over."

Gifts? Cooking? B wasn't comforted by Eleazar's words. After all, she had already been given so much. Not to mention, if Carmen's cooking was even half as bad as Kate's…

Yet despite her fears, as well as the ball of dread that had taken up residence in B's stomach, she found herself walking into the Denali's home.


	14. Chapter 14

Author's Note: Sorry guys, but Thanksgiving was crazy, and as I was still working on the way too huge chapter, I realized that I wasn't going to finish tonight. So I once again went back, changed and cut the chapter up into a smaller one, and decided to post this part of it now.

Chapter 14

The first thing B noticed was how good the place smelled. There was no signs of burnt or strange food anywhere. In fact, as B's eyes were drawn to a giant table, B realized the food not only looked good, but made her mouth water.

The second thing B noticed was the gifts. B couldn't focus on anything else after that, and wouldn't have been able tell anyone what the room even looked like, simply because the giant mountain of gifts seemed to take up B's entire vision.

Finally, she tore her eyes away from the gifts as two gorgeous, smiling blonde girls stepped into the room, keeping their distance in case their presence might overwhelm B. None of the vampires had any clue that it was the gifts and feast that they had prepared had already overwhelmed B, not the fact that she was now in a room with five vampires.

Irina opened her mouth to say hello, but the first thing that came out of her mouth instead was, "What is with that coat?"

At that, B blushed and mumbled, "Kate made me wear it. She's kinda scared of me getting cold."

Kate looked at her sisters, a proud and protective gleam in her eyes. "Cause humans and shifters can get cold. They can even freeze to death."

"Yes, you're right about that," Tanya said slowly, trying to hide her smile at how much Kate was suddenly concerned about anyone's safety. It had been only a few weeks ago that Kate had wanted to go looking for trouble with other vampires simply because she had been bored. "B, I'm Tanya, and this is Irina. It's nice to finally meet you." She kept her distance, still afraid of scaring the girl, but gave the girl a smile full of warmth.

"Nice to meet you too," B mumbled, too shy to catch either sister's gaze for more than a moment. They all reminded her of Kate, and if B didn't know any better, she would have believed that they had been biological sisters.

"Well, you're going to be warm in here, so why don't you take off your coat?" Carmen suggested, resisting the urge to help B out of the piece of clothing in question. While she had let her excited emotions get the better of her earlier, she was now all too aware of how Kate stood so close to B, eyes alert for any danger or threat despite her relaxed body posture and easy smile. It was like Kate's entire world revolved around B, and it was clear Kate would do anything to protect the smaller girl.

"Yeah, good idea," B said, clearly relieved. Then everyone got to have a small laugh as B tried to reach for the zipper, only for her not to be able to reach. The puffiness of the coat acted as a barrier of sorts to keep B's arm from getting too close to her body no matter how much she struggled.

"Let me do it," Kate said, stepping up into B's personal space and moving B's hands away. B didn't even try to protest, even as her cheeks warmed from needing help like a small child.

As Kate grabbed the zipper, she had to stop herself from swallowing. She was actually _undressing_ B, and while she was still all too aware of how B pushed her away earlier, she couldn't stop her instincts from making her take quite a large amount of pleasure in the act of undressing B.

Everyone saw Kate's eyes darkening as she unzipped the coat, save for B herself, who was still staring at the ground. Her body felt like it was buzzing for some strange reason, and she felt almost drunk on Kate's warm chocolate and cinnamon scent. Finally Kate finished unzipping and pushed the coat from B's shoulders, and pulled it off of her arms.

 _Fucking finally,_ B thought, since the moment felt like it had taken a thousand years. For some reason, she still couldn't look up. She was almost afraid to.

Both girls were unaware that the other four vampires in the room were watching them, all with large smiles on their faces.

Still clutching the coat in a hand, Kate took a step back, doing all she could not to give away her emotions as she stared at B. She still looked just as tempting as she had in the cabin, and having her family in the room did nothing to lessen the temptation.

Without thinking, she tossed the coat on a couch, earning a disapproving look from Tanya. Grumbling, Kate walked over to pick up the coat and hang it somewhere...would the back of a chair work? Kate really didn't want to leave the room.

"Wow, do you look good," Irina said, appreciating the shy beauty that now stood before them. While she felt no lust, simply because B was Kate's mate and she would never betray or torment her sister to that degree. Still, at Irina's words, Kate's head snapped up, lips skimming back from her teeth in a silent snarl.

"Kate sure got lucky," Tanya agreed, much to B's confusion and Kate's raging protectiveness. Seeing her sister's reaction, Tanya had to hide a smirk. It was about time that she had something she could hold over Kate indefinitely.

"Speaking of Kate, how does it feel to tame such a crazy vampire?" Eleazar asked with a teasing grin that only confused B further.

"Huh? Tame?" B asked, and that's when a panicked Kate had to step in.

"Hey, presents! Let's open these bitches up, huh?" Kate said as she flashed towards the mountain of presents, throwing B's coat in Eleazar's face. "I bet you want to see what my family got you as a welcome to the family kind of thing, am I right?"

Family? B felt her body grow warm, but not the kind that she got with Kate. It was the kind of warmth she got when her mother had told B that she loved her, or when her gruff, no nonsense dad would give her an awkward hug that told B how much he cared about her. She tried looking at her sisters, Tanya and Irina, in the way that she saw Kate, but she just couldn't. At most, she could only think of them as Kate's sisters...and maybe, selfishly, her own as well.

"B? Presents?" Kate asked, a tad softly, noticing how B had seemed to recede into her own head.

At Kate's voice, B opened her mouth to answer, but her stomach answered instead. The loud growl once again had the entire coven smiling as B found herself embarrassed for the hundredth time since she entered the house.

"Maybe we should let her eat first," Carmen said as she glided over to the table, already starting to fill a plate with food.

B didn't know whether to feel scared or thankful at the prospect of eating. After all, Kate had made her realize that even in the off chance she made something that smelled good, it could still taste beyond horrible. Still, she wasn't going to be rude, especially after the warm welcome, so she shuffled over to the table and moved to grab a seat. Before she could, Kate flashed over to B and took hold of the chair, pulling the seat back for B to sit before pushing her in, like Kate had seen done in a bunch of old movies. B stuttered out a thank you, and once again, Kate looked incredibly pleased with herself as she sat next to her.

Carmen sat a heaping plate of food in front of her before all the other vampires took their seats, watching her with curiosity. B was so flustered that she didn't know what to do, before deciding that maybe picking up her fork and trying something might be a good start. So she did, trying not to eye the food too obviously, but Carmen interrupted.

"B, you can use your hands for those," Carmen said, her voice kind and even understanding, but it still made B feel humiliated none the less. She set down her fork, staring at the food warily. A part of her wondered if the vampires knew how little B knew about normal things in general, or if they just thought she was that much of an idiot. As Carmen pointed out what the different foods were, B picked up something called a taquito and took a bite.

It was good! Tanya, the only one who could see the surprise and excitement on B's face as the brunette ducked her head, laughed in a way that had the rest of her family glancing at their coven leader in confusion. Tanya only shook her head, choosing not to comment, as B dug in with a new gusto that made everyone turn back to B, taking enjoyment out of her pleasure. Tanya rested her head in her hands, eyes moving between Kate and B. It was already clear to Tanya that she would love B like a sister, and once again, she couldn't help but think about how happy she was for Kate.

B couldn't believe how good the food was. Wherever Kate had learned to cook, if she hadn't just decided to wing it when she first met B, it wasn't from Carmen. She had never tasted food so good in her life. As she ate, she started trying to figure out how she was going to convince Kate to take cooking lessons from Carmen. Maybe she could just convince Kate to bring her over to the main house as much as possible? No, that would be rude to come over and expect someone else to cook for her. What if she asked Kate for some of Carmen's recipes to cook for her? No, knowing Kate, Kate would still screw that up.

"...Yeah. The house is going to be complete in a few more days." At Eleazar's words and Kate's pleased exclamation, B looked up, glancing from one vampire to another in hopes of gleaning more information. Their house, from what B had seen of it, looked finished to her.

"We're building a house for you and Kate to live in," Irina explained, seeing B's confusion. "The cabin is much too small, and we know you'd prefer a place of your own a little farther away so you two won't be heard even when we're out hunting."

"Irina!" Kate hissed, trying not to sound as panicked as she felt. Thankfully, B was too confused to notice Kate's attempt at changing that particular part of conversation.

B just couldn't understand it. First of all, they thought the _cabin_ was _small_? If that wasn't strange enough, why wouldn't B and Kate want the coven overhearing them? Were Kate and her supposed to be keeping some secret? And Kate loved her family, from what she had heard of them in the few times Kate hadn't insisted learning about her. So why would they want to move even farther away?

As B stayed deep in thought, she didn't notice how Kate was all but waving her hands in a "cut the chatter" kind of way, or how Irina, and now the rest of the coven, was giving Kate strange, confused looks.

Tanya, realizing that something was going on, stood up. "I think Kate and I need to have a chat. Isn't that right Kate?"

Kate, who was now glaring at Irina because of the teasing look in the other blonde's eyes, looked toward her sister. "Huh? But why?" Kate whined. She didn't want to be away from B, especially since her two unmated sisters had realized how cute and gorgeous and perfect her mate was, but also because she wanted to see B open her presents and get to know her family and just enjoy her relaxed and happy time with her mate.

"Because it's important, isn't it?" Tanya said, carefully prodding so Kate realized that Tanya was trying to help her.

"Oh. Right." Realization hit Kate as she realized her older sister actually could help Kate with her problems. She pushed back from the table and got up, only to freeze. She shot a worried glance at her mate, not wanting to leave her alone.

"Don't worry, Kate. They'll be _careful_ while they keep her entertained," Tanya assured her sister, giving everyone else a warning look that made them realize all wasn't as it seemed. With that, Tanya walked out of the room, expecting Kate to follow. Only to have to come back and grab Kate by the wrist when the girl stopped in the doorway to stare worriedly at her mate some more. Giving her a look that clearly questioned her sister's sanity, she dragged Kate out of the room and the house until they were far enough away that she knew that they wouldn't be overheard.


	15. Chapter 15

Author's Note: Apparently, I lied. I could, and did, finish the chapter today. Also, fair warning, this is where things start to get really M rated. Ironically, it's not even Kate's fault. Here it is! Please enjoy.

Chapter 15

Back at the house, B seemed to feel it the second Kate was no longer near her, and she froze up. Every vampire noticed, and smelled, the sudden fear that came over the girl as she realized that Kate was no longer around, and that she was now in a roomful of vampires that, while all seemed incredibly nice, she still didn't know well and she didn't trust.

"Hey, you're okay here. Nothing is going to happen," Carmen assured the girl, putting a hand on B's shoulder in a comforting manner that still made B jump nearly a foot out of her chair before falling back down. The hispanic woman regarded B worriedly as she realized once again how terrified the girl was of vampires. She wanted to know what had happened to her so she could help put those fears to rest, but knew better than to ask the girl––at least not when the girl barely knew her and was already so panicked.

"Do you want to open some presents up? We've actually been planning on giving you these since the day you came in," Irina said cheerly, even while she thought, _Thank God Tanya took Kate far enough away so she didn't feel all of this._ The air was full of the smell of panic and fear, and B's heart was beating at a mile a minute. Not to mention the fearful gleam in her eyes that made Irina's heart break. If Kate had even felt a glimpse of what was happening to B right now, Irina doubted that Kate would ever leave B's side again. Strangely enough, while the quickened heartbeat should have enhanced the girl's scent and made Irina's mouth water, it didn't. In fact, not even inhaling a lungful of B's scent didn't so much as tickle Irina's thirst. She could easily tell that the others felt the same, seeing as how neither Eleazar or Carmen so much as hesitated as they tried to calm B down.

It wasn't the mating bond between Kate and B that caused this. Even if B was completely saturated in Kate's scent. Yet while Kate's scent was strong on her, it wasn't at a degree that it would have been after sex––something that Irina found strange since she knew her sister would have usually jumped B at least three or four times by now. So Irina was completely confused, having no idea why she didn't find B's amazingly delicious scent appetizing.

B seemed to shrink in on herself at the mention of presents, something that worried the three vampires, until B muttered, "I feel bad. You've already done so much for me, and now you're giving me more...but I don't have anything to give you back." All B owned was a pair of clothes that she was pretty sure Kate threw out––B wouldn't have blamed her, since they were only incredibly smelly scraps. B really owned nothing else.

To her surprise, all three vampires burst out in laughter. The thought that B's problem revolved around accepting too many gifts was way too much for any of them to take with a straight face.

"Trust me, B, there's no problem. We want to spoil you," Carmen said as she got up from the table. "Speaking of spoiling, do you want anything else to eat?"

At that, B eyes the food on the table. She wasn't hungry, but she had no idea when she'd have a good meal again. "I don't know if this is rude or not, but do you think...do you think it's possible for me to take the food with us? To eat back at the cabin, I mean."

Eleazar burst out laughing. "I thought I found your expression strange when you started eating Carmen's food. I take it Kate's not a good cook?"

B flushed a dark red, something the vampires found beyond adorable, but not appetizing in the least. "Please don't tell her," B hurried to say. "She loves cooking for me so much, and I don't want her to find out that her food is inedible."

Irina was now laughing hysterically at this, holding her stomach. She almost commented about the amazing lengths someone was willing to go through for their mates but held her tongue, remembering Kate's strange behavior and Tanya's warning look.

Eleazar, with a completely straight face, put a hand on B's shoulder. Looking her dead in the eyes, he spoke in a solemn voice; "You brave, brave girl."

Carmen held back her laughter, slapping Eleazar in a chastising manner on his back. "Love, be nice to the poor girl." Her eyes showed nothing but amusement, yet after giving her husband a kiss, she composed herself enough to turn to B and say, "Don't worry, we'll find a way to help you along, yes? And you will bringing home as many leftovers as you and Kate can carry."

B let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Carmen," she said with a smile, and she once again realized how quickly she was starting to feel comfortable with the three vampires. While she hadn't been in their house long, she was already starting to feel like she was part of a family again.

In only a few moments, B had been moved to the couch, where she was shoved one present after another. They loved seeing her face, which showed general excitement, happiness, and amazement with each opened present, but the best reaction was when she was given a kindle. At first, she simply looked incredibly confused, but when she found out what it was and did, her eyes lit up in a way that made every vampire light up with the same excitement. They almost felt bad for Kate, since they wouldn't be able to stop themselves from showering the girl with gifts after watching her open them.

B seemed to get happier and more grateful with each passing second, but the real excitement she felt was when she heard Kate coming back.

There was a pause, and she heard Tanya say, "Don't worry. Things will most certainly work out," and then they started walking towards the front door again. B paused with confusion, but when the door finally opened, she stood up, vibrating with excitement. Eleazar, Carmen, and Irina all watched with amusement as Kate entered the room, eyes immediately finding her mate––or where her mate had been a second before, since B had flown across the room at incredibly speeds and launched herself at Kate. Tanya's eyebrows arched in surprise as Kate let out a grunt and stumbled backwards, held up with Tanya's hand against her back, but Kate didn't even notice enough to say thanks. Instead, she hugged her mate and laughed.

"What's up, Kitten? You act like you haven't seen me in years," Kate teased, and it was then that B realized exactly what she was doing. She blushed again and tried to pull herself from Kate's arms, but Kate only tightened her grip and walked into the room with B's limbs still wrapped around her. It was only when Kate saw the opened presents that she felt herself start to pout. She had wanted to see B open those!

Sighing at the unfairness, Kate dropped onto the couch. She wanted to cuddle into B to make up for what she missed, but had to let her increasingly embarrassed mate go. B slid off of Kate's lap, wondering about her own reaction to Kate coming by, all the while unable to meet anyone's eyes.

"So, since you already opened everything...video games?" Kate asked hopefully, nudging B's side with her own. She repeated what Tanya had suggested over and over in her head like a mantra, _Stay close but not too close, close but not too close…_

B looked into Kate's honey colored eyes for a long moment, then nodded as everybody else groaned.

"What's the point of even coming over here if all you're going to do is play videogames?" Irina complained as Kate jumped up from the couch with an excited whoop. But at Irina's words, she sighed with exaggerated patience.

"Because now we can play as a _family,_ " Kate said slowly, like she was talking to a small child. Irina rolled her eyes, but let Kate set up the game. Kate handed a controller to B, who held it unsurely, almost as if it would bite her.

"It's not going to blow up, is it?" B asked nervously. Kate, who realized that B was thinking about the last time Kate got excited around a cell phone, pouted.

"Of course not! That was just one time!" Kate protested, taking the second controller while tossing the other two behind her to whoever wanted to play as she took a seat next to B on the couch. She started up Super Smash Brothers, nearly bouncing with excitement at the chance to share joy with her mate. Seeing how lost B still looked in even choosing her character, Kate started explaining how to do all the moves and what to press when before the game started.

Immediately, B ran off the stage and died.

Kate laughed as B was reborn, and nearly gave in to the urge to kiss the scowl off her cute mate's face. Instead, she continued the game, fighting off Tanya and Eleazar's characters as B tried to figure out what to do. Somehow, the first hit she landed sent Kate's character flying right off the screen, making her lose a life.

"Hey! Traitor!" Kate protested as the rest of her family once again dissolved into laughter.

"Sorry!" B said with a wince, clutching her controller closer to her chest as if she was handling a dangerous weapon.

"With B here, maybe we can finally beat her now," Eleazar laughed.

"Me next!" Irina exclaimed in excitement.

Soon, the mix of Eleazar and Tanya ganging up on Kate and B's own mistakes and trouble over figuring out which character she was took it's toll. Kate was once again launched off the screen, losing her last life. Kate growled as Eleazar and Kate's two sisters cheered, with Carmen teasingly giving Eleazar a congratulatory kiss.

Knowing she needed revenge, she eyed her mate. Her mate, who had barely gotten hit since she lost her first life. Her mate, who had contributed to her demise. Her mate who, if she won, would still technically mean that Kate won as well.

"S'cuse me, cutie," Kate purred as she slid behind her mate, wrapping both of her arms around B's body as she stole the controller away. B shuddered and blushed as she found herself between Kate's legs, that warm chocolate and cinnamon scent beyond overwhelming. With Kate's breath billowing against her skin, Kate's mouth so close to B's ear, B didn't even notice that Kate had stolen her controller. Not that she would have cared.

In less than five seconds, Kate had managed to kill Eleazar, and let out a low growl of victory as she found herself in a one on one against Tanya. That growl made B's insides shiver, and she leaned heavily against Kate, trying not to do something stupid, like gasp or moan. She was so out of it, she didn't even know what she wanted to do––she just knew that whatever it was, it had to do with Kate.

Kate snarled, distracted by her mate's arousal. A part of her was panicking. Did B really have to feel this here? Now? In front of her two unmated sisters...her entire family...when B had rejected her only later that day…

Tanya cheered her victory as she took advantage of the immobility of Kate's––B's––character, and turned to rub it in Kate's face. Instead, greeted by the world Kate and B seemed to have disappeared to, she threw Kate's abandoned controller to Irina. Carmen discreetly snatched the controller as Kate dropped it, now completely focused on her mate. Kate's arms tightened around B considerably as she buried her face in B's neck, inhaling deeply. And when B started purring, rubbing her cheek against the side of Kate's face...damn, Kate all but lost control.

Realizing what was happening, Tanya paused the game. "It's getting late, maybe it's about time you two went back to the cabin," she said gently, realizing how much Kate was being overwhelmed with her instincts at the moment, as well as how much Kate was trying to fight them. Irina gave her a strange look, wondering why they couldn't just stay at the house; after all, it wasn't like Kate no longer had a room here. Tanya shook her head, telling Irina that it wasn't the time, and then turned back to her third sister. "Kate? I really do think it's time you leave," she said again.

Kate looked up, eyes completely black. Realization eventually set in, and she looked back down at B, who seemed more than a little out of it.

"Thanks," Kate whispered quietly, making B look up at her. Kate nearly gasped, seeing the fire burning in eyes that were now tinted with gold. _No. B just said...something's going on. She isn't really in there,_ Kate told herself, and she was right. Behind the hunger in B's eyes, there was primal instinct. Right now, B was nothing more than a cat in a human body; there was no rational thinking going on in that moment.

Holding her breath so as not to get pulled back in by her Kitten's arousal, Kate stood up, dumping B on the floor.

"Hey!" B exclaimed, snapping out of whatever stupor she was in. She scrambled to her feet just as Kate flashed back with her coat. "Kate, wait, what are you––mmph!" B's muffled protests were all that could be heard as Kate put the jacket on B's body and zipped her up to the very top, right over B's mouth.

"Gotta go home. You know how things are. You living creatures need your beauty sleep," Kate said, gaining another muffled protest. Kate was all but pushing B out the door, swearing that they'll be back soon, and was stopped only when Carmen handed her a large stack of boxed leftovers.

"B loved them," Carmen explained, and that was all Kate needed to snatch them from the other woman. Making a note to ask for Carmen's recipes later, Kate shoved B out the door, Tanya closing it behind her.

"What was that all about?" Irina exclaimed, and Tanya held a finger to her lips. She wanted to wait until B and Kate were out of hearing range before Tanya filled them in.

Outside, the walk home was torturous for both girls. B looked confused, a glaze in her eyes that almost suggested she was drugged, and Kate was battling her arousal and wondering what the hell was going on with B. Something was, after all, clearly not right. But she didn't even know how to start that conversation without bringing up that B had all but started stripping for her right in front of her family, and she didn't want to embarrass her mate...at least not about that particular subject.

When they got home, a seriously worried Kate suggested B go to bed early, and a still confused B quickly agreed. B knew something was going on with her. Although her actions since Kate had taken the controller from her were all a blur, B was still of the right mind to know that she had done something to really freak Kate out. Hoping it wasn't too big of a deal, a seemingly drugged out B changed––right in front of a wide eyed Kate, who felt like she was going to combust from all of her pent up desire and fell into bed. Well, she fell onto the couch, but Kate managed to pick her up and move her, without more than a passing thought about feeling B up.

With B now asleep, in bed, and tucked in, Kate let out a sigh of relief. Finally, the day was over. Now Kate had eight hours to get a hold of all her lust.

It was right before midnight when Kate realized how antsy her mate was getting. B was still asleep, but she wouldn't stop moving. It didn't seem like a nightmare, but it was definitely something, so Kate moved closer to offer B some comfort. B cuddled into Kate's side and seemed to relax, falling back into a peaceful sleep as she sighed Kate's name. Kate gave her mate a soft smile as she was once again filled with love for her Kitten. Knowing her body could offer such comfort, and hearing B whisper her name when asleep was the best compliment anyone could give her. It made Kate feel loved, cherished, and Kate wanted to make B feel the same way every moment of every day.

Kate brushed some hair out of her mate's face, only to stop when she felt B's heartbeat change. Shit. Did Kate wake her? As Kate worried, B shifted closer, letting out a loud purr that made Kate automatically purr back. She smiled down at her little mate, this time running fingers down B's face.

Just like that, B's eyes snapped open, and Kate suddenly found B straddling her waist, hands propping B up on Kate's stomach, B's hooded eyes shining with a golden glow. Arousal permeated the air, making Kate's eyes darken to black immediately. When B smirked, showing some elongated fang in her smile, Kate had no doubt in her mind that B knew exactly what she was doing to her.

"B. What are you doing?" Kate asked, attempting to hold her breath as she spoke. She really didn't need to be driven mad by B's arousal again.

She got no verbal answer from her mate, but B did slip her hands under Kate's shirt, pushing the material upwards. Kate groaned at just feeling B's insanely hot hands on her cool skin, and when she attempted to sit up, B pushed her firmly back down, letting out a little growl that told Kate to stay put.

It was only when B's hand slid up to cup her breast that Kate snapped back into reality...or so she thought. Double checking that she wasn't stuck in fantasy land, she looked back up into B's hungry eyes. Holy fuck, this was real. But wait...

No. No way. No fucking way. There was no way in hell B had changed her mind that fast. For fucks sake, she hadn't even wanted to kiss Kate a few hours ago!

"B, wait a sec––fuck!" B pinched a nipple, and Kate fell back onto the bed. Even just feeling B's overheated skin against hers was enough to drive Kate crazy, it was the reason Kate never climbed into bed naked, but actually having B touch her like this…

Letting out a low purr, B bent down to nuzzle her neck, then gave the skin a hard nip that sent a shock right to Kate's core.

Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck...no! Going against every one of her instincts, Kate grabbed B by the waist and flipped them so Kate was on top. B let out a furious snarl and thrashed, but Kate grabbed B's wrists and pinned them to the bed above B's head. Still B thrashed, and still Kate held her down, using her entire body to do so...which seriously wasn't helping.

Beyond aroused and desperate, Kate had no choice but to struggle to keep B pinned until B wore herself out and fell back asleep.

Taking a deep breath, still afraid to move, Kate slowly released B's hands. When B didn't suddenly attempt to jump her, Kate let out a breath of relief and sat back on her haunches, warily watching B sleep.

What the hell had just happened?


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

B awoke, for the first time ever, feeling frustrated and irritated beyond belief. In fact, her entire body felt tight, as if she had been tense with anger for the entire night. Best of all, she had no idea why.

Sitting up and realizing that Kate hadn't been in bed with her, her gaze wandered around the room...only to nearly get a heart attack when she found Kate crouched at the foot of her bed, eyes pitch black and face blank. She let out a scream, hand flying over her heart, then took a deep breath when she realized who it was.

"Kate, what the hell?" B demanded, grabbing the pillow from behind her and throwing it at Kate's head. Kate didn't even attempt to dodge, so the pillow hit her square in the face before tumbling onto the mattress.

"Are you okay?" Kate asked her face still an expressionless mask, which confused B even further.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" B replied, noting just how off Kate seemed. She climbed over to Kate on all fours, which made Kate's eyes darken impossibly further, and lifted a hand to feel Kate's cool forehead. It was only after a moment, when Kate's lips quirked up in a small half smile, that B remembered that vampires didn't get sick, and that checking for a fever was one of the stupidest things she could do. Flustered and annoyed at herself for feeling that way, B dropped her hand and looked at the bed, finding something very interesting in the simple design.

"So you really don't remember, huh?" Kate asked, and she didn't know whether to feel thankful B didn't remember or frustrated.

"Remember what?" B looked back over at Kate, cocking her head to the side in a cute gesture, and that was all Kate needed for her control to snap once again. Without thought, she tackled her mate, pinning B's arms above her head and straddling her waist, leaning in so their faces were only inches apart.

"Remember this?" Kate growled in a soft, husky voice that made something deep inside B shudder.

B's breathing rate increased as she stared into Kate's eyes, completely transfixed. Did something happen last night? What could B have done to…? Just like that, memories came flooding back to her. Each one she saw through a strange fog, but each one was undoubtedly real. She remembered exactly what she did to Kate, and Kate trying her hardest to respect B's wishes. She was sure that it was the first time in history that a succubus had turned down sex like _that,_ and after remembering how B had attacked Kate, she was mortified.

Horrified realization hit B's eyes, and Kate knew she remembered. She also knew that B seemed to have no idea why she had nearly ravaged Kate––until she seemed to remember something else.

"Oh my god. The full moon! It was yesterday!" B exclaimed, clearly panicking. Kate let go of B's hands, but still hovered over her. She quite liked being on top of her mate, and right then, being on top was likely the only thing that stopped Kate from going mad after the three hours of torture, then another four hours of waiting for B to wake up, that Kate had to endure.

"Explain?" Kate asked dryly.

B tried to sit up, but since Kate wouldn't move, B had to grab Kate's shoulders and try to squirm out from under Kate's body. Kate followed her for a moment, so close to B that their bodies rubbed together, keeping on top of her. Licking her lips when she heard B's heartbeat quicken, her eyes moved to B's lips. One taste after all that torture wouldn't hurt, would it?

Kate started to lean in, so close, and then their lips brushed. It was barely even a brush, she could have felt it simply because Kate had wished for it so bad, but it set her entire body buzzing with electricity. She wanted more, wanted to drag B to her and crush their lips together, but B had pulled back, and that was all Kate needed to remember her control––no matter how pathetically weak that control was.

At the same time their lips might have touched, B had jerked back with a gasp. She didn't protest or get angry, she just stared at Kate with an unreadable expression on her face. B herself had no idea if their lips had actually touched in that moment, but she knew that now her felt cold and empty, and she craved Kate. Craved Kate in a way that she didn't think was possible.

"The full moon," B's whisper was just another temptation to the vampire. Kate's hands curled into fists from where she was still partially on top of B, holding her breath so as not to inhale that wild honey scent of hers. "It's something special, even to shifters. The stronger the moon's pull, the stronger the shifter, and closer to their Were ancestors, they are."

Kate blinked, stunned. "You mean you're, what? Descended from werewolves?" Kate felt a ball of dread fill her, and her world came crashing down. She had never heard of werewolves giving birth. Like vampires, once turned, they were supposed to be barren. But if this was true, and the Volturi found out...she could bring the Volturi down on her family. She and B would have to go into hiding, and Kate would have to protect her mate from the biggest vampire coven in the world––

"Sort of. Not all shifters are," B explained. Seeing the worry on Kate's face, and remembering what her...informant, Sly, had told her about the past between vampires and werewolves, B reached out to cup Kate's face in her hand. Seeing Kate relax made B fill with warmth in way B had never felt before. In fact, B couldn't explain how happy she was, knowing she could bring happiness to Kate. "My family sort of...branched off? Yeah, that's it. We were the kids of a male werecat and a woodland witch from a couple hundred years ago. We got a mix of their talents; for instance, we could shift on command, and we weren't cursed, so much as blessed. While we couldn't turn anyone with a bite, if we found a human mate, our magics would slowly turn them into a shifter like us so we wouldn't have to live forever without them. We were also filled with magic, and while we didn't turn into monsters on the full moon, we still feel the moon's pull. It makes us want to work off the extra energy that we get, especially around midnight when the moon is at its highest." B was so annoyed with herself for not realizing that the full moon was last night that she didn't notice how Kate had tensed and bristled, eyes flashing with jealousy at the thought of B...working out her energy...with someone else. Thankfully, B's next words soothed her. "I usually just have to run the energy off...I've never felt an urge to fuck someone before."

Kate bit her lip to silence the hungry snarl at the thought of B wanting to fuck her. Once again, thankfully, B was still deep in thought.

Hm...could it be? No. No, of course not. Kate would have told her.

"So you're not a werewolf...or a werecat...you're something better." Kate said, and B nodded. Kate was beyond pleased, and not just because that meant that B really did smell nearly as good to others as it did her. She wasn't just pleased because B hadn't been with anyone, at least to her knowledge, before Kate either...although, admittedly, they had only gotten so far last night because of Kate's conscience, but Kate was going to be rectifying that once B knew everything. No, she was pleased because now, even if the Volturi were to somehow find out about B, they would know she wasn't a threat. While she _was_ faster than at the very least most vampires, she wasn't stronger, and she didn't go crazy––at least not in a way Kate wouldn't enjoy the hell out of––on the full moon. And if the Volturi still insisted on coming after her, well, then they were going to have to face Kate first.

"It really is strange…" B mumbled again, trying to figure out why she had tried to attack Kate. It wasn't simple attraction. After all, she had felt attracted to Sly, who was a self proclaimed asshole, but she had been attracted to the other girl none the less. The black jaguar shifter had even spent a few full moons with B throughout B's time on the streets, but B had never felt the urge to jump her.

Realizing that she was still holding Kate's face, B blushed and removed her hand. Or tried to, but Kate grabbed her by the wrist and held her hand in place with a low growl, rubbing her cheek against B's palm. Neither had moved much as B had explained everything––Kate was still on all fours, between B's legs, a hand next to B's stomach propping her up, with B in a half sitting position, their bodies only an inch or two apart. While at first it had helped keep Kate calm being on top of her mate, subtly dominating her after all that B had pulled last night, thanks to that kiss and the talk of fucking, everything was finally starting to get to her. B hadn't said no to their first ghost kiss, so what would happen if she stole one more? Maybe her Kitten would even let Kate

"Kate?" B asked in a soft voice, taking Kate's attention off of B's lips––sort of.

"Yeah, Kitten?" Kate purred, and B's eyes widened at the effect Kate's sex voice had on her. She also completely lost her train of thought as her arousal once again filled the air, which made Kate smirk. B let out a frustrated feline growl that made the smirk fall off of Kate's face as she climbed a little higher on B's body, pressing her down into the mattress. Not that it made any difference––B's brain was already scrambled enough. If only she had the same effect on Kate that Kate had on B, then she'd show that smug vampire of a...fuck…!

Kate pressed her body a little harder between B's legs, and while B wanted to pull away, wanted to remember what question she had been trying to ask her vampire, B's hips lifted, pressing herself against Kate's stomach. Kate let out a low snarl, covering B with her body, instincts riding her to claim and take and possess and love…

It was right as Kate was going to kiss her again, this time for real, that B had a flashback. A flashback to the last time they had been in such a similar situation, where B had refused Kate, and her reasons why. She had to stop Kate again. She had to, if only so she could know.

When B's hand landed on her chest, Kate let out a loud snarl as she was once again denied. She couldn't take it. Her instincts were riding her so hard, and she was so close, that Kate was just a breath away from losing her mind. B was _hers_ and she needed to make sure the world knew that, that _B_ knew that. _Her_ B, _her_ Kitten, _her_ mate.

"Kate, stop. I need to know something," B said. It took all of her strength and willpower, especially since Kate didn't seem to want to move and B didn't want her to either, but B managed to push Kate away. Kate sat up in a kneeling position, eyes still pitch black, a slight snarl on her inhumanly gorgeous face, which B reached out to stroke once again. This seemed to work, calming Kate enough for some sanity to come back to Kate's eyes.

"What is it?" Kate asked in a rough, husky sex voice that once again made B just want to give in to her. Her mind went to other places as B's fingers trailed down Kate's facet to her neck, tracing Kate's collarbone, making the vampire shiver. As she did so, a part of Kate's scent seemed to strengthen, and B's eyes widened as she realized the truth. It wasn't that Kate could control her arousal, like B had once wondered. The truth of the matter that, at the very least while Kate was around B, Kate was simply aroused all the time.

Realizing this, B licked her lips. Her entire body seemed to beg for Kate, and realizing this made it even harder to resist. If Kate really wasn't what B thought, then B would have to leave. She wouldn't be able to take being around her any longer... _Or_ , an evil, desperate part of B thought, _I could just give into her anyways. After all, Kate is over a thousand years old...whose to say that Kate wouldn't find her mate for another thousand years after that?_ B immediately felt guilty for the thought and pulled away, shaking her head to clear it. Kate's fingers twitched as if to stop her, but Kate seemed to hold herself back.

"Right." B took what was supposed to be a deep, calming breath, but which only made her slightly dizzy since she was still enveloped by Kate's scent. Even B's clothes were saturated with the smell of warm chocolate and cinnamon. So instead, she held her breath, closed her eyes, and cleared her mind. Centering herself, she opened her eyes and looked into Kate's golden pools. "Kate, are you…?" B choked on the words, she couldn't help it. She was just so scared. Scared of being wrong, of losing Kate, of having to leave…

Kate could see the pleading look in B's eyes, and her heart broke. She wanted to comfort B in any way possible, and while the need to touch and hold B were still overwhelming, all the lustful, possessive thoughts were shoved to the back of her mind.

Yeah, she wanted to comfort B. But would telling her really comfort her?

Looking into B's turmoil filled eyes, Kate decided it didn't matter. She had to do this, say this. Just say it and rip the bandaid.

"Yes, Isabella. I'm your mate."


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

At first, B didn't know what to feel. She was confused, upset, hopeful, freaked out, relieved, angry...angry. Yeah, that was a good start. But first, just to make sure Kate was serious…

"You're not joking?" B demanded with an intensity in her voice that Kate had never heard from her before.

Kate shook her head. She was sure that if her heart was still alive, it would be beating at a mile per minute. Her words had changed everything. "No. Not joking."

Just like that, B exploded. "What the fuck, Kate? You didn't think to tell me sooner?" B demanded, jumping off the bed. She started to pace, repeatedly running her fingers through her hair as she realized how much torture Kate had put the both of them through. "Damn it, I get that we haven't known each other for a long time, but I've been living with the mindset that you just randomly decided to kidnap some random shifter when you brought me here. I had no idea what was going on, and you knew that shifters like me don't automatically know who their mate is!"

"But...you were really scared of me at first. So I wanted you to calm down and like me, get used to everything, that sort of shit. I was getting ready to tell you before, but then that whole thing happened yesterday after I tried to kiss you and you said that whole thing about how only my mate could satisfy me, and then I couldn't say it because you'd think I was just trying to get into your pants," Kate explained almost desperately as she watched her mate pace. She had gotten up with B, but was standing off to the side, unsure what to do to calm her mate down. When Kate finished her ramble, B paused, staring at Kate for a long moment.

"Fuck," B muttered, turning away. "Why do you have to start making sense now?"

"Hey!" Kate protested, starting to pout. "I make sense more than––"

B was suddenly hugging her, tightly, breathing in Kate's scent. Kate hesitated for a second, wary of B's mood change, but eventually decided that _fuck yeah, she was going to hug her mate back._ Just as she tried to, however, B let out a loud groan of frustration as she realized how much time and pain was wasted, pulled back, and slugged Kate in the arm.

"Damn, Kitten," Kate complained, rubbing her bicep where she had gotten hit.

"You deserved it," B muttered in reply as she started to pace again. The knowledge that B had a mate changed everything. She would finally have the other half of her soul, wouldn't have to wonder any longer if she even deserved one.

Wait a second. B froze at the power of her realization. If B was Kate's mate, then… _That means Kate is mine._ The thrill of knowing Kate was hers for eternity, that only she would get to kiss and touch and love B, made her beyond thrilled. So thrilled, in fact, that she launched herself at a still wary Kate. Kate caught her with ease thanks to her vampire reflexes, but even those couldn't have prepared Kate for the kiss, their first, real kiss, that B laid on her.

Every book, every movie, couldn't have prepared either girl for the actual thing. It was heat and fireworks, dark desire and the brightening of their souls. They felt complete and close, yet not close enough. Hunger and passion exploded between them as they kissed and kissed, lips moving in perfect synchronization, hands roaming over each other's bodies. Kate even finally got to grope B's ass again, and B actually purred in response. Yet just as Kate ran her tongue along B's bottom lip, asking for access, B pulled away and hopped down.

"Damn," Kate muttered, staring wide eyed at her panting mate.

B nodded in agreement, having trouble processing the emotions that continued to overwhelm her. She wanted more, but she wasn't the type of girl that would just throw herself at her mate the second she found out. Cats made their mates work for it, and B was going to be no different.

"Can we kiss some more now?" Kate asked, stepping closer to B.

B turned to Kate, her expression blank, but her eyes sparkling with trouble. "Do you really think that just because I know we're mates now, I'm just going to let you kiss me whenever you want?"

Kate nodded vigorously, reaching for her mate to continue where they had left off, but B danced away from her arms, leaving Kate beyond confused.

"Sadly, you're wrong. After all, what kind of mate would I be if I didn't challenge you?" B said with a smirk. Even in their last days, her mother would tease her father. It was part of the whole catch and reward instinct between mates, and B had that same instinct ingrained in her very DNA.

"But you've already challenged me enough," Kate complained, crossing her arms over her chest. Now Kate really was pouting, because all she wanted was to kiss and touch and hold in a way she couldn't when B didn't know.

Oh, Kate was really going to have trouble with her now. "Well, if that's how you see it...I guess I should go for a run." With that, B was out of the bedroom, grabbing some clothes to change into. Kate was so stunned and bewildered that it took her seeing B leaving the bathroom in her new clothes and heading for the front door to get her to move.

 _This should get the perv more than worked up,_ B thought wickedly, pulling something off to leave behind right before she shifted.

Kate got in view of the front door just as B shifted...and Kate was dumbfounded to find the shirt B had been wearing only moments ago, lying right there on the floor.

 _Holy fucking shit._ Kate didn't think, didn't hesitate. The second she saw that the shirt was on the floor and realized that, if B were to shift back, she'd be have naked...well, it was more than enough for Kate to fly out of the cabin after her mate. If B wanted to take a gamble like that, then Kate sure as hell was going to take her up on it.

It wasn't long before Kate caught up with her Kitten, but with a lazy glance over her shoulder, B picked up the pace.

"Damn it!" Kate snarled as she actually had to push herself to keep up. Taking a chance before B got away from her, Kate lunged, only to get a faceful of dirt. She hopped back up to her feet, only to see B was long gone. With another growl, Kate once again ran after her, only to find B waiting in a clearing, licking her paw like she had been waiting for Kate to catch up. Once again, Kate pounced, but just as her feet left the ground, B was off once again. This time, Kate hooked a hand around a tree branch so she could follow without losing that precious second that would be wasted falling, but B was still so far ahead of her.

B had definitely gotten faster since they had first met, that was for damn sure. And while Kate would never admit it, having to chase her mate down was beyond arousing. Kate almost felt sorry for B when the vampire finally caught her.

Seven hours later, and B was starting to wonder if she should let herself get caught. She was actually starting to feel sorry for Kate, who was currently a good twenty feet behind her. At the thought, she started to slow down, only to remember exactly who her mate was.

Shit. Kate was a vampire succubus, and B was just an inexperienced virgin. If she let herself get caught now, with the state that Kate was in...fucking hell, she'd give the term _lesbian bed death_ a whole new meaning. B would be lucky if she could move for days afterwards.

So B sped back up and Kate, who had thought her mate was finally getting tired, growled with frustration at being denied.

At least ten more hours passed, since it had already gotten dark then light again, and so B decided to put an end to the game. Bounding off of a tree and flipping over Kate's head, she shifted back to human.

Immediately, Kate's gaze fixated on B's chest, and her shoulders sagged as she found B wearing another shirt underneath the first. While it was skin tight and looked gorgeous on her, it wasn't exactly the half naked state Kate had hoped for. But then Kate's optimism got the best of her, and she brightened. "So I win?" Kate asked, her voice husky with desire as she took a step forward. Her eyes were still fixated on B's chest as she imagined peeling the shirt off of her, or maybe she'd just rip it...

"My eyes are up here," B said dryly, putting a finger under Kate's chin and lifting her head. Kate nodded, but her eyes wandered downwards once more, consumed with her fantasies. "But no, you didn't win." Kate's black eyes snapped up to hers at the statement, making B laugh, which once again drew Kate's gaze to her chest as Kate realized B still hadn't gotten used to wearing bras, and clearly wasn't wearing one now. "Kate, it's getting close to twenty four hours and you couldn't catch me. I'm getting hungry, and I don't want Carmen's leftovers to go to waste. So we're going to head back, and you can try again another day."

"But...but...that's not fair!" Kate whined. "You cheated, too, putting another shirt on, and...I've been cheated!"

B took hold of Kate's hand with a roll of her eyes, but couldn't help give the blonde vampire a fond smile before giving Kate a quick peck on the lips that held just as much fire as their first kiss had. "Is that better?"

"Yeah," Kate said with a contented sigh, before slyly adding, "But it would be even better if I got to hold you naked...or even shirtless…"

B seemed to consider Kate's words, which really got Kate's hopes up, but then B started to pull her hand away with an evil smile instead.

"No, wait, holding hands is good. I can live with that. Hell, I love it," Kate blurted desperately as she hung onto B's hand with both of hers.

"Good girl," B teased, which made Kate grumble about sadistic mates. _I really could get used to this,_ B thought, heart bursting from the feelings she had worked so hard to repress. She started to pull her own hand towards her body, which set off Kate's protesting again, but B only shook her head as she transferred Kate's hand from one of B's hands to the other. "Calm down," she murmured, reaching up to brush Kate's hair out of her eyes, tucking it behind Kate's ear. "Didn't I tell you? I don't go back on my word."

"Mm hmm," Kate hummed with pleasure, a huge smile on her face as she stared down at the girl who would give her that fantasy forever.

"Thanks for telling me, Kate, even if you took a little while," B said, giving Kate another quick kiss. "And just so you know...I couldn't have gotten luckier."

At B's words, Kate's face split into the biggest grin yet. No longer having to hold back, she didn't hesitate as her free arm snaked around B, pulling the girl against her as she gave B a kiss filled with all of her love for the Kitten that was her world.

When B kissed her back, that world became perfect.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

After hunting, they decided to stroll back to the cabin. The walk back was quiet, but it was filled with happiness. Neither girl wanted to hurry, and as the sun came up without the overcast sky, B got to enjoy seeing Kate start to sparkle.

"You know, you might have a fairy ancestor somewhere in your line," B teased, running her fingers down Kate's arm.

"That's where you're wrong," Kate shot back. "In case you didn't realize it, all vampires sparkle."

"Yeah, but you seem to be sparkling more, not to mention brighter. You've got a fairy ancestor!" B sang, hopping away when Kate made a grab for her.

"Hah. I'm too badass to be a fairy," Kate scoffed, looking away to hide her smile and keep her tough girl persona when B took her hand again.

"I don't know about that. You seem a little too cute to be some badass vampire," B taunted. "A little too sweet, too."

"I'll show you sweet," Kate growled, pulling B against her once again. Her eyes burned with a dark fire that made B's entire body want to respond.

"That won't exactly help your case," B murmured, trying to hide her smile when Kate frowned.

"Says the little scaredy cat who can't even hunt a deer," Kate replied with a playful growl.

B's eyebrows rose. "Excuse me? Who's the one who is so afraid of me getting hurt that she won't even let me try?"

"You're breakable, I'm not," Kate replied simply, and a bit smugly.

So B pulled away to drag Kate along. At first when they entered the cabin, Kate thought that B was leading her to their bedroom, and went eagerly. Instead, she was only partially right––Kate was brought to the bedroom, where she was then abandoned as B left her again. Kate quickly followed her out, but by then B had already made it to the bathroom and closed the door. Kate could hear her lock it, and she let out an annoyed hiss as she heard the shower turn on.

"Didn't we agree that we'd take your next shower together?" Kate complained as she crossed her arms over her chest, clearly pouting by the tone of her voice. B could easily imagine the jutted bottom lip that, admittedly, B had wanted to take between her teeth on more than one occasion.

"You decided that," B replied as she stripped. "As I told you each time before and after I was taking a shower, no way in hell."

"But we're mates! Doesn't that mean anything to you?" Kate protested, and her voice sounded so whiny that B had to hold in her laughter.

"I assure you it means a great deal. Which means I might let you into the shower with me in, eh...a couple years, tops."

"Years!" Kate exclaimed, sounding so distraught B couldn't hold in her laughter anymore. And once she let it out, she couldn't stop. So she stayed there, naked and bent in half from the force of her laughter, and all she could think was that she was glad that Kate hadn't seen her in that position, otherwise Kate might not have been able to hold herself back...and B wouldn't have stopped her.

Finally managing to get a hold of herself, B straightened. "If you try to come in, I won't kiss you for two days," B threatened, although B doubted she would be able to last that long.

"Damn it!" Kate muttered as she removed her hand from the doorknob. What was her mate, a mind reader? Thinking of a certain other mind reader left a bad taste in her mouth, so she decided to keep her mind on her mate showering only a few feet in front of her, completely naked. Yum.

It was as B was showering that she realized that her game might actually be dangerous, but not for her. "Kate, what does it mean to be a succubus?"

Kate started at B's question, promptly kicked out of her own fantasies. "Oh, um...you know, it means a seriously enhanced sex drive, and a serious need for sex at regular intervals. Ironically, the sex actually makes it easier to control the bloodlust."

At that, B felt herself getting worried. "I'm not hurting you because we haven't had sex yet, right?"

"No," Kate was quick to assure her. "We can last a month or two, and I…" Kate hesitated, unsure if she should finish the sentence.

"What, Kate? You what?" B asked, pausing in her washing to look towards the door as if she could see through it.

"I had sex with someone right before I met you," Kate admitted, and then jumped at the force behind B's snarl. Shit. Was B mad at her? If she had known...although admittedly, then she would have had shit control and the cravings would start, so maybe it was a good thing. To her surprise, before she could try to calm her mate, B said something instead.

"Sorry!" B called, cringing as she realized just how furious the thought of Kate having sex with someone else made her. Her mate was a succubus vampire who lived for a thousand years, B couldn't have expected Kate to remain celibate until they had met. "My bad, I didn't mean to––"

"You have nothing to apologize for," Kate quickly interjected. "Seriously, if our positions had been reversed…" Kate wouldn't have been able to contain her jealousy and, if they had already started having sex, would have been very thorough in claiming and marking B's body, making sure B could only remember her, that B's body could only want her.

"Yeah I do, so shut up and take my apology. I don't give a damn how you would have reacted, I'm still fucking apologizing."

Kate recoiled in surprise at B's words, then couldn't help but smile. "So does this mean, if I get jealous of someone––?"

"Then you're a fucking idiot," B said in such a calm voice Kate couldn't help but laugh. "I'm already yours, and no one can talk me away from you. But I'll also understand, since I'll also probably be just as stupid, so we'll just apologize and have a make up make out session. Or maybe a make up make out session and make up sex. Okay?"

"Oh, it'll be more than okay…" Kate muttered lustfully under her breath.

"I heard that!" B said with a laugh as she turned off the water and stepped out. It was only then that she realized she had forgotten her clothes, so with a sigh, she sucked it up and knocked on her side of the door. "Kate, can you get me some clothes?"

"I don't know, can I?" Kate replied cruelly. "Or maybe the correct question is, should I?" Just imagining B in a towel, or even naked, having to come out to get some clothes made Kate all hot and bothered, and excitedly so.

"Kate. If you don't get me clothes, it's true I'll have to go out there in a towel. But do you really want to deal with the consequences of having me nearly naked in front of you, without me letting you touch me? And trust me, while you wouldn't be allowed to touch me, I'll be all _over_ you."

As Kate realized what B was saying, she let out a groan. Being able to look but not touch would be great foreplay, but Kate knew that there would be no endgame, even if Kate begged. She'd be touched and who knew what else, then left to dry as B got changed.

"I'll go get your clothes," Kate mumbled sulkily as she got up from where she had been leaning against the bathroom door.

"Thanks, babe," B replied tauntingly, but it still made Kate smile as she went to retrieve the clothes.

After getting what she believed would be a great outfit, she left it by the door, knocked once and said, "I'm leaving it here!" before booking it to the bedroom. She waited with anticipation as she heard B open the door, heard it close again, and even waited as it sounded like B was getting dressed. Yet B never yelled or even sighed with exasperation, which surprised Kate greatly.

A second later, Kate heard the door open again and B walk into the bedroom. Kate looked up with a grin to find B staring at her with arched eyebrows and a cocked hip. "Really, Kate?"

"Yeah," Kate said, all but drooling as she took in B's outfit. B wore a short, tight top that showed off B's midriff and generous cleavage, and the skirt she wore went only an inch or two past her ass. To top it all off, Kate didn't give B any underwear.

"You're such a pervert," B muttered, rolling her eyes as she walked back out of the room. "I wonder how your sisters will like it."

At that, Kate was up with a snarl as she heard a door open. She flashed into the living room and out the door, running towards the house...only to stop halfway there as she realized that while B's scent was everywhere, it was old...as in, at least an hour or so old.

"She didn't," Kate muttered in disbelief. " _I_ didn't." Running back home, Kate flung open the door...and there B was, sitting at the table, chowing down on some leftovers with a smirk on her face.

"Before running out of the house, I suggest you check the kitchen first," B suggested dryly before taking another bite.

"You're going to pay for that," Kate murmured, her voice dark and all too sexy as she started stalking toward B.

"Must we really go through all this again? I run, you chase, and you can't keep up," B pointed out with a wave of her spoon, although she didn't really want to run at the moment, seeing as she was eating.

"I'm a vampire, Isabella," Kate purred. "We don't get tired...and while I'm sure you have amazing stamina, you're not going to be able to keep up with me forever."

It felt like someone had injected liquid fire into B's veins, she was that hot. Swallowing hard, she stood up and backed away from the table. Wanting to catch Kate off guard, she lunged at the vampire instead of away. Kate was surprised, but knowing she had to keep on her toes around her little mate, reacted within a second, grabbing B and flipped so that B was suddenly on the couch, Kate above her, bodies pressed together.

"Remember what you made me put on," B murmured as her arms twined around Kate's neck.

"Oh, I remember alright," Kate purred as she ran her fingers up B's thigh, making the smaller girl gasp. "And I plan to take full advantage of it."

"You better," B growled. Since Kate had technically caught her, she decided to reward her mate by pulling her into a kiss.


	19. Chapter 19

Author's Note: Okay, the verdict is out, and it's official: I'm awesome. Three chapters in a single day!

Chapter 19

They hadn't been making out on the couch for more than twenty minutes, tops, until Kate heard someone knock on the cabin's front door. Letting out an annoyed growl, she decided to keep going with her Kitten. Whoever it was would go away eventually.

"Kate, the door," B mumbled, but even she didn't make much effort to untangle themselves. She didn't even let go of her hold on Kate's hair.

"No," Kate replied petulantly, moving back in for another kiss.

B rolled her eyes. "You are so spoiled."

"Yeah, well your kisses––"

"Don't even try to say that I'm the one who spoiled you. You were acting like a spoiled brat since the day I met you," B teased, tilting her face upwards to steal another kiss.

Kate let out a grumble as someone knocked again. Kate could have lifted her head to scent whoever it was, but she really didn't want to move. "Who's a brat?"

"I'd say the woman––"

"Hello? I can hear you!" Irina's irritated voice shouted from beyond the door. "Which means I know you're there. So either someone better come to the door right now, or I'm breaking it open."

"Bitch," Kate muttered as she rolled off of B and onto her feet.

"Inconsiderate jackass," Irina shot back.

Rolling her eyes and muttering about certain pain in the ass sisters, Kate walked over and opened the door. "It was unlocked!" she exclaimed with a mix of surprise and annoyance.

"I wasn't just going to open the door. Who knows what I'd walk in on," Irina retorted as she sauntered inside. "I take it everyone's decent?"

"Not really, but I'll do," B said with an evil edge to her voice as she got up off of the couch and ran her hands through her hair and straightened her clothes. It was at that moment that Kate remembered what B was still wearing, and she flashed over to wrap her arms around B possessively, hissing at Irina, who got a good look at what B was wearing.

"You're the one who picked the outfit," B reminded Kate, absently reaching behind her to rest a hand on the back of Kate's neck.

"For my eyes only!" Kate protested as she nuzzled B's neck, sending another warning glare at Irina.

Irina sighed with exasperation at her irrational instinct-controlled sister, but was inwardly pleased. When Tanya had explained what was happening between the two, Irina had been seriously worried for her sister. Yet only a day later, and she was walking in on them getting pretty damn frisky.

"So, what brings you by, Irina?" B asked with curiosity, not looking even a quarter as upset about the interruption as Kate was. In fact, by the glint in B's eyes, she seemed to enjoy drawing out Kate's discomfort.

Irina nearly laughed out loud. It was good to know that Kate had someone who could keep her on her toes, and who clearly could mess with Kate, and well, whenever she felt like it. "I came here with a message from our cousins. They were wondering how B was doing, and if she was up to visiting a few more vampires in the future."

"Nosy bastards," Kate grumbled, then let out a grunt when B elbowed Kate in the stomach.

"So, B? Are you up to visiting some more vegetarian vampires?" Irina asked, focusing on the more mature and reasonable of the two.

B bit her lip, deep in thought. "I don't know...I mean, I did just meet you guys yesterday...or was it two days ago? I don't want to be overwhelmed, and I really want to get to know you guys first."

"Good answer. I'll tell them that," Irina said with a small smile. "Now with that business over with, come by the house in the next few days, will you? Carmen has some new recipes she wants to try out." Irina had to stifle her laughter at the thankful look on B's face, then turned to her sister. "As for you, oh crazy one, here. Don't fry it this time." With that, Irina tossed Kate a brand new cell phone, which Kate caught, sticking out her tongue.

"C'mon, what did I do now?" Kate complained after getting another elbow to her stomach from her mate.

"What do you say when someone gives you something?" B asked slowly and quite a bit condescendingly.

"Really?" Kate demanded in exasperation. She looked at her mate, who nodded, then to her sister, who was waiting patiently and expectantly, clearly milking the situation for all it was worth. Letting out an annoyed sigh, she muttered, "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Irina said with relish as B patted Kate's hand.

"There, was that so hard?" B asked sweetly, making Kate grit her teeth.

"You have no idea," Kate growled, glaring at her sister.

"Well then deal with it," B said simply as she twirled away from Kate to go grab the tupperware from the kitchen. Kate couldn't help but stare after B, or more particularly, stare at the way B's hips swayed.

Damn, Kate could get used to B leaving without her if that was her reward. In fact, maybe she could convince B to stay human while Kate chased her through the surrounding forest.

"Get your head out of the gutter, you pervert," Irina said, making B laugh from the other room.

"Shut up," Kate muttered, too focused on B to think up a good retort.

Then B was back, holding quite a few containers. "Do you think you could take this back to Carmen for me? And tell her thanks for the food, I really loved it," B said with a touch of shyness.

"Of course," Irina said, taking the containers from the cat shifter. She smiled at B, who gave her a kiss on the cheek, flipped a growling Kate off, then sauntered out the door without another word. Kate followed her, just so she could slam the door on Irina's ass. She locked it right as Irina let out an angry yelp.

"Right." Kate took a deep breath once Irina was finally on her way. She turned to B, a charming smile on her face. "Now, where were we?"

"Is there a reason you're so possessive around Irina? I mean, she's your sister," B asked, turning to Kate, clearly with no intention of continuing where they had left off.

With a huff, Kate explained. "I don't care, she's still an _unmated_ _succubus._ " The last two words came out as a furious growl as she remembered B's friendly kiss on Irina's cheek.

"So, mated is better than unmated when it comes to contact?" B asked, still trying to figure things out. While she didn't have much to go on since her shifter education had ended so young save for Sly, who was also unmated, she was sorta sure that mated shifters weren't this bad. Then again, they hadn't mated yet, so maybe she'd get worse after she marked Kate as hers?

"Technically yeah, but either way, my instincts are telling me not to let anyone touch you. It's hard," Kate said, all but groaning. It really was getting harder for her; the longer B remained unmarked, the stronger the impulse to claim her and protect her from anyone else became. She knew newly mated pairs could actually be worse, but she doubted anything could be worse than the constant war raging inside of her right now.

"Sounds complicated," B murmured thoughtfully, really trying to think back and remember all of her parents' teachings.

"It is." Kate tried to wrap her arms around B in a hug, but B twirled away without hesitation. Narrowing her eyes, Kate let out a low growl of frustration, and at seeing B failing to hide her smirk, tried to grab B again. Once again B danced away, so Kate lunged, and B gracefully flipped right over her. "Come on, Kitten," Kate complained from where she was now laying on the ground––she had put quite a bit of strength behind her lunge. "Can't you just let me catch you for once?"

"Too boring. Besides, who wants a mate who can't even keep up?" B teased, and it was beyond enough incentive to make Kate stand up and lunge at B again. Kate was going to catch B, even if it killed her.

LINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINE

Well, Kate's attempts to catch B didn't kill her, but the deprivation of kisses was. B seemed quite content to just jump, hop, and twirl away, mocking Kate endlessly. Then B suddenly decided it was time for bed, and that Kate lost...again.

Kate didn't lose. She _hadn't_ lost until B came into her life. Although, she had to admit, the consolation prizes weren't too bad.

Of course, Kate felt it wouldn't be enough until she had her mate naked and beneath her, but that would come in time. Short time. Kate would make sure of it.

"Don't even try it," B warned as Kate's hand slid upward to cup a breast. "I need to sleep, and you need to learn some patience."

"I've shown lots of patience," Kate said with a sigh, but she moved her hands back to B's waist.

"Then you need to learn to show some more," B said, making Kate groan and bury her face in B's hair as she pulled B's back further against her front. "You know, I'm already in love with you," B said in such a conversational tone that it made Kate do a double take. "I'm sure it won't take too long for you to woo me into bed."

"Huh?" Kate blurted, unable to think of something better to say.

"You heard me. Now let me go to bed, sexy." With that, B closed her eyes. She was asleep in moments thanks to the comfort she found in Kate's arms, but Kate was left bewildered and trying to figure out what she was supposed to do next.

That night, B had her first nightmare since she had met Kate. She dreamed of that strange, dark sound, the one she couldn't place, the one that had scared her not once, but twice, when she had been out in the forest with Kate. She dreamed of it getting closer, honing in...and the owner of that sound stopped, right outside of the two's bedroom door. But Kate couldn't sense it...and B couldn't wake up to warn her, or even scream.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

B woke up after what felt like eternity, and felt beyond relieved that Kate was still with her, and that either the presence outside their door was never there, or it had disappeared. Kate held B tight against her, sensing her fear, but wouldn't say a word until B was ready.

"Kate, did you hear anything last night? Or even smell something strange?" B asked, voice muffled since her face was still buried in Kate's shoulder.

"No," Kate murmured, kissing the top of her head. She didn't ask why; she knew it probably had something to do with the strange noises she had been hearing, although B was worried that whatever the sound was, if it existed, had B scared in the cabin now.

Heart still pounding wildly, she wrapped her arms around Kate, who rolled onto her back, pulling the cat shifter on top of her. Kate just stayed like that, pained to know that there was nothing she could do to help until B was ready.

"It was just a bad dream," B whispered at last against Kate's neck. "Nothing more."

Kate frowned, wondering if B wasn't just saying those words for Kate's benefit, but for her own as well. She considered asking B if she would be okay with talking to Irina about these things, since Irina had gotten quite a few psychology degrees over the years and might be able to help, but something stopped her from asking. So she just propped herself up on one arm, using her hand to stroke down B's back in a comforting manner.

"Okay, but if you want to talk…" Kate murmured, kissing the top of B's head again.

"Yeah." B tried to push the fears away, but it still lingered in the back of her mind, making her feel threatened despite what she told herself. Maybe she should push to go to the Cullens after all. If whatever was plaguing her just had to do with the area, then B's best chance at feeling some peace was to go somewhere else for a while.

Deciding to talk it over with Kate and her family first, B sat up, startling Kate with her sudden movement. Cupping Kate's face in her hands, B decided her girl deserved it, and so much more, so B leaned down to kiss her softly. Kate let out a hum of pleasure, hands cupping B's ass––of course––as the kiss deepened. The fire between them burned low but hot, and it was only the laziness of the morning and the smell of B's fear still lingering in the air that stopped Kate from trying to grind against her mate.

B's tongue dipped between Kate's lips, just a little, and when she opened for the cat, B pulled back with a small smirk, running her hands down Kate's body as she sat up.

"Tease," Kate groaned, making B laugh as she hopped off of Kate and headed towards the closet, a little more sway in her hips than usual.

"I have to do something to keep you motivated," B said over her shoulder as she bent down to open a drawer.

Another groan slipped out of Kate's lips as she stared at B's ass. "Trust me, just your presence motivates me plenty."

"Then you better catch me soon. When you do, I'm yours." B headed towards the bedroom door as Kate snarled with her frustration, but B's pause and the spike of fear from her mate took her mind off of her own problems immediately.

"B?" Kate called softly, but B didn't answer, didn't so much as twitch. Kate got up and walked over, wrapping her arms around B's waist and rubbing her cheek against her mate's. "Isabella, what is it?"

Biting her lip, B leaned back against Kate. She didn't sense whatever it was now, but… "Can you maybe open the door for me?" she asked in a small voice. It wasn't that she wanted Kate in danger, but the fear was almost paralyzing.

Immediately, Kate felt a swell of anger as she realized B was afraid of Kate thinking less of her for asking. Whatever was scaring her, whether it was just a dream or not, Kate _needed_ to kick the thing's ass.

"No problem," Kate said, her voice strangely calm considering her own emotions. With a kiss to B's cheek, she let the girl go, unconsciously moving in front of B in a protective manner. She grabbed the doorknob, turning it...and the second it opened, Kate was jerked backwards, nearly falling on her ass.

"Sorry," B said sheepishly, having attempted to drag Kate out of the way in case whatever it was was still out there. But nothing stood in the doorway. Not a thing looked out of place, and there were no strange scents that indicated anything was off. Kate probably thought she was crazy now, for sure. Feeling miserable yet relieved, B slipped past Kate, mumbling, "Let me just go change and get ready…"

"Can I watch?" Kate asked, trying to lighten the mood while also being completely serious and hopeful.

B laughed weakly, but it was a laugh. "Maybe when you get a little better at catching me…"

"Oh, I'll get better alright," Kate muttered under her breath, turning back towards their room to go grab some clothes for herself. She was starting to consider going to bed naked, debating if B's reactions would either be hilarious and help get Kate into B's pants, or if it would only lengthen the process of the whole "woo her" thing, but when her eyes landed on the doorknob, she froze. A fear unlike any other gripped her as she stared, and stared, and stared, unable to understand how it had happened.

For there, in front of her, was their door. The doorknob was nothing but a twisted hunk of melted metal, and around it in a perfect circle, the door was completely black and charred. It was a good thing Kate was a vampire, because otherwise she'd have suffocated since she couldn't fucking breathe.

Sniffing the air furiously, ears straining for any strange sound, Kate wanted to punch through the wall when she smelled and heard absolutely nothing. Despite that, the facts were undeniable. Kate hadn't made that, which meant that something had been in their house. Something had tried to open their door...or maybe changed their mind at the last moment? The door had...holy fuck, the door had been unlocked. Something could have come in and done who knew what to them, and Kate hadn't even sensed anything off last night.

But B had. Her B, her _mate,_ had sensed something, something scary enough to give her nightmares. Nightmares that were actually fucking real.

Cursing heavily, Kate got dressed in record time, grabbing her cell phone.

"Hello? Isn't it a bit early for you––"

"Tanya, this is bad. Something was in our house, and I don't know what it was...I couldn't fucking smell it, or hear it, or anything, and it was at our bedroom door. Our fucking bedroom door! It––"

"Kate, calm down. What's going on?" Tanya asked, her voice calm and cool in an effort to calm Kate, but Kate could hear an undertone of anxiety to it that even her coven leader couldn't hide.

Kate explained as best as she could, starting from when B had gotten scared over a sound she had heard when they had gone outside for the first time. She concluded with the nightmare, the marks on the bedroom door, and not only getting any clues, but not having any idea what the thing could possibly be.

"Okay, come over to the house immediately. You're going to have to put your sex life on hold until we at least check this out, do you understand?" Tanya asked, taking control of the situation even as she threw a little taunt at Kate.

"You're lucky we haven't gotten that far, or I'd be so pissed," Kate joked, although she was still too tense to even let her mind there. All of her instincts were on alert, screaming at her to protect her mate...her strangely silent mate, who was taking quite a long time in the bathroom. "Shit. B? B!" Kate flashed the two feet from their room to the bathroom door. "B! Damn it, B, answer––"

The door flung open, revealing a clearly annoyed mate, hair still wet from the shower and eyes a little gold. "What? Kate, don't you dare try to tell me that you can get separation anxiety just from five minutes apart, or I swear…" Her eyes traveled downwards, taking in Kate's attire and completely losing her train of thought. Kate was wearing a tight white shirt that was sleeveless, with a low neckline, and black short shorts that left very little to her imagination. She struggled to regain her composure, but it was clear from the way her arousal filled the air how distracting the outfit was to her.

So distracting, in fact, that she didn't even notice the bedroom door behind her.

"Yeah, I'm clingy, we've been over this. Hey, just wanted to tell you, Tanya invited us over, so we're gonna go to the house, okay? Good, awesome, let's go." Kate scooped B up before she could even shake herself out of her lust induced daze and took off out the door, forgetting B's jacket, which she realized halfway there but wasn't willing to go back for. B started complaining about the rush, being carried, how she wasn't some little kid, so Kate shut her up with a kiss that had B melting into her, clutching at her with sharpened nails that pricked Kate's diamond hard skin.

"You better explain what's going on," B muttered, loosening her hold on Kate when she was released for some much needed air.

"I will. Promise," Kate swore, and a few moments later, they were at the house.

"Um...if we were invited over, why is no one here?" B asked, disconcerted as they walked into an empty house.

"Sorry!" Carmen called from the kitchen. "I'm just cooking some food for you, I'll be done soon enough."

B's stomach let out a joyous growl at that as Kate set her down, but then her stomach seemed to shrivel in on itself when Kate brightened and said, "Let me help."

"No!" B's loud and frantic rejection, as well as her grab for Kate's hand, clearly took the vampire by surprise. Kate stared at her with confusion as B scrambled for a reason as to why she had reacted so harshly. "You, uh...promised you'd explain what was going on. I want to know. No distractions."

"I know I promised, but I just feel it'll be best when everyone's here," Kate said, awkwardly scratching the back of her head. While she knew that Kate's news about what had happened to B's bedroom would freak anyone out, B especially so, she still wasn't going to hide what had happened from her. B was her mate after all, and while scaring her mate wasn't something she liked, she would rather deal with that fear than keep something from her mate again.

"But––"

Leaning forward so B got a perfect view down her shirt, she rested a hand on the table next to them, her other hand reaching out to trail Kate's fingers down B's face. "Please, Isabella?"

B's eyes glowed a little more gold for a moment as her brain restarted, but then she sighed. "Fine. But we're watching TV." Anything to keep Kate away from the kitchen.

With that, decision made she grabbed Kate's hand and dragged her over to the couch. Kate was the one who looked ready to protest now, so B grabbed the remote and plopped herself into Kate's lap to shut her up. Kate grinned to herself, enjoying having B on top of her, and wrapped her arms around the smaller brunette as B struggled to figure out the remote. Laughing to herself and feeling more relaxed than she had all morning, Kate gently took the remote from her, turned on the TV, and switched it to some reality show. It wasn't long before B was completely entranced, although more due to her own confusion and curiosity than any interest in the TV show.

"Why does she paint her face like that? Does that man have to flex every time he's on camera? Why are those two mad at each other when it was the boy who cheated on them with each other without telling them?" were just a few of B's many, many questions.

While it entertained Kate greatly, even Kate didn't know how to answer them all with useful information. So basically, every answer to B's question was either some version of, "Because they're stupid," or "Maybe it's a human thing." Still, even the stupid show and B's barrage of questions didn't stop Kate from mooning over her Kitten. In fact, B's expression and clear confusion only made her impossibly cuter. So cute, in fact, that Kate just had to bite her. So she did, tilting her head for better access and gently biting B's earlobe.

B yelped and jumped, and Kate was so surprised she actually let B jump right out of her arms and land on her ass on the floor. Seeing B's embarrassed blush and expression had Kate cracking up, with Carmen trying to politely hold in her own laughter from the kitchen, knowing B would be able to hear her.

"You surprised me," B protested weakly, making Kate laugh even more.

"Yeah, yeah, my little scaredy cat," Kate teased, bending down to scoop up the pouting shifter and pull the girl back onto her lap, although this time B was seated sideways. Kate leaned in, brushing B's hair behind her ear, and lightly nibbled on B's ear, making the girl jump again, although only slightly this time. "You better get used to this, because I like to taste you...preferably all over."

"Well you better get used to waiting," B murmured breathlessly. "Because my _taste_ is for someone who can keep up with me."

"I'll show you who can keep up––" Kate growled, leaning towards her mate.

Just at that very moment, the door burst open, and in stepped Irina, Eleazar, and Tanya, all incredibly serious, and clearly nervous. Their sudden appearance made Kate pull back with a frustrated rumble, her vampiric instincts not wanting anyone else to see B as Kate claimed her, no matter how small the claiming would be.

"We have a problem," Tanya announced, her eyes darkened, calculated, and cool, as they immediately found and landed on Kate and B. "A big one."

Kate looked at Tanya, then B, then back to Tanya, taking in Irina and Eleazar's states as well. Realizing how bad it really was, all Kate could say was, "Fuck."


	21. Chapter 21

Author's Note: Okay, I know this chapter is kinda short, but I'm not sure when I'll be able to get back to this if I didn't upload it now. Also, for herokenz: for some reason, I couldn't message you, but to answer your question, I do plan on doing other pairings eventually once I get ideas for them. This story is going to be pretty long with a lot of story arcs so I'm not sure how much time I'll have to get to other stories, but I'm planning on eventually doing a Bella/Irina story, Bella/Leah, Bella/Tanya, Bella/Rosalie...maybe even Bella/Jane. I just need to get the ideas flowing first, and maybe find some more time for writing, and I'll post them if I get to them, although I can't guarantee the insane updating I've been doing now. Sorry for the long author's note everyone, and thanks for reading!

Chapter 21

Realizing that there had actually been outside of their bedroom was bad enough, but learning that three vampires, plus her own mate, hadn't been able to detect any sounds, smells, or even anything unusual besides what had happened to their bedroom door had B freaking out in a way that even she had never felt before. The only thing that kept her clinging to her sanity was Kate, who was holding on to her tightly, kissing her cheek, neck, and head and assuring her that they were going to find this thing and take care of it, and that they'd all be safe. B had to believe that, not just because she already couldn't imagine anything happening to any member of the family, but because it was Kate saying that. Kate, who was a fighter. Kate, who would never let anything happen to not just B, but to her entire family.

These vampires were strong. There's no way anything could happen to them.

"B," Tanya's calm, kind voice broke the shifter out of her desperate thoughts, and B looked up from her hands into Tanya's warm golden eyes. "We're going to keep you safe," the vampire promised. "But you're going to have to stay here for a while until we get things sorted out, okay?"

B nodded, but then came to a realization. She looked up at Kate and asked, "Are you sure you're going to be able to handle that?"

"Handle what?" Kate asked, her brow scrunching in confusion.

"Me, unmarked, being around your entire family...them getting to see me naked…"

"Nobody is going to see you naked in this house, do you hear me? Nobody!" Kate snarled, eyes suddenly black but alight with an instinctive overprotectiveness as she tightened her hold on Kate.

"Not even half naked?" Kate growled and viciously shook her head. "Promise? Even if you try to change your mind?" B persisted as she absently took Kate's hands, tracing patterns on the back of Kate's hands with her thumbs.

"Fucking hell I promise, and there's no way in fuck that I'm changing my mind! No one is seeing you naked. Got it?" The last question was directed at the other four vampires in the room, who all nodded, Irina dryly holding her hands up in a defensive way.

"Okay, so that means nobody, including Kate, is allowed to see me naked while I'm in this house. Good to know...but I wonder how long Kate is going to be able to survive like that…" B mumbled, pretending to herself, but with an evil glint in her eyes. She knew when Kate realized what had just happened because Kate's grip on her slackened, and the other vampires were clearly trying, and failing, to hold in their laughter.

"But...but...I take it back, no one but me. No one but me is allowed to see you!" Kate tried to backtrack, but it was too late.

"Sorry babe, you promised," B said, relaxing into Kate as she consolingly patted Kate's hands. Looking up and seeing Kate's horrified expression had B cracking up, and it felt amazing. Even facing the most terrifying thing in the world, just being with Kate, messing with her, made everything feel like it was going to be okay.

"Come on! That's not fair!" Kate protested.

"You walked right into that, didn't you Kate? Maybe now you'll learn to think before you speak," Irina teased, making Kate turn to glare at her.

Then she turned that glare on B. "It is _on,_ you get me?" Kate murmured, making sure to keep her mouth against B's ear. "I'm going to have you begging for mercy in all sorts of ways by the time I've finished with you."

B shivered, but didn't back down. "It's about time you show me the big bad vampire that you claimed to be. I wouldn't have it any other way." Their eyes met and held, electricity arcing between them. In that moment, nothing else existed out of their own competitive bubble.

"The other problem is that Kate wasn't able to hear anything even when...whatever it was came right up to your bedroom door." At Tanya's words, Kate's head snapped up, a snarl tearing out of her throat. "We have no idea when or how the thing is getting so close, and it seems like the only one able to sense and hear the thing is you."

B grimaced. "Right."

"So what do we do?" Kate asked, strangely serious as she turned to her family. "It's not like B can just not sleep until we catch it."

"That's what we're working on. For one thing, we don't know if whatever this is is actually after B or you, or if it simply came across you by chance. We're going to have to ask B to keep an eye and ear out, and Kate, if she seems to even feel a little uneasy while she's sleeping, you will wake her up."

Every moment B spent around them, B would find herself understanding more about their family. As for right now, B was understanding more and more about why Tanya was the leader. It wasn't just about age, it was about her ability to handle situations and keep everyone calm, or at least keep them on track. Of course, she'd have to be strong, having Kate as a sister for all of those years.

"Here you go, _mija,_ " Carmen murmured, handing B a plate of food. B felt everyone look at Carmen for a long moment, and realized the Spanish woman looked embarrassed, almost as if she had said something she hadn't meant to. Deciding to just find out what _mija_ meant on the internets thingy, B filed the word away for a better time and thanked Carmen for the food before digging in.

"It's fine. I'm actually happy you feel that way, Carmen," B heard Kate whisper in an incredibly low and fast voice, and Carmen smiled at B in return. B wondered how they did that. She couldn't imagine saying something so quickly without getting tongue tied and making a fool of herself. Moving her mouth to attempt it, she was once again distracted, only this time by Eleazar.

"B, I would love to figure out how well you can hear. It would really help us in the long run," Eleazar said seriously, crouching down so he could capture the smaller girl's attention.

"Yeah, of course," B quickly agreed with a nod, before taking another bite of Carmen's food. She let out a happy moan; Carmen's food really was the best.

"Hey, I'm the only one allowed to make her moan like that," Kate joked with a playful glare at Carmen, making B choke on her food. As B coughed and struggled to swallow, Kate thumped her on the back, all the while looking at B with mischief in her eyes. "You okay there, Kitten?"

"Yeah," B muttered, giving Kate a look to warn her off of any future comments while she was eating. It looked to be that when Kate said it was on, she meant it was on in all ways.

To get back at her, B started to squirm and grind in Kate's lap as she ate, making sure to moan. "Mm, so good," she said in a breathy voice, and felt Kate's chest vibrate as she growled. "You're the best, Carmen."

"You do realize that's my wife, right? You can't have her," Eleazar said, but despite his poker face, his eyes sparkled, letting B know he was enjoying her messing with Kate almost as much as B was.

"Damn, are you sure?" B asked, feigning disappointment, which made Kate snarl and try to grab her so she could pull B back into her body. Instead, B hopped up, leaving a hot and frustrated Kate. "Too bad, then I better get to work. I've got ears to test, after all."

"You're going to pay for that, B, just you wait," Kate swore, but B just laughed it off.

"So, how are we going to do this thing?" B asked, looking at Eleazar as she walked outside, him following her.

"I'm just going to tell you how far I hear, and we're going to compare it to you," Eleazar explained. "I'll go first." Closing his eyes and expanding his senses, he started listening for everything and anything. "The farthest I can hear is about forty miles out. To the right of us is a herd of deer, about eighteen of them…"

"Six males, eleven females, and two fawn," B finished, and Eleazar opened his eyes to stare at B in shock. "Their weight and the racks of the males make different sounds when they walk," B said, answering Eleazar's unasked question. "There's also a wolf another thirty yards out, probably about to try and snag a meal."

"Right." Eleazar shook his head a little, clearly shocked. "Anything else that I need to know?"

"My kind tend to be weaker physically that vampires, but also a whole lot faster. We can still hurt and kill vampires in quite a few situations because our speed can give us an advantage. We're also a lot more _flexible_ and _acrobatic,_ " B added, knowing that Kate was listening in. "We can use that to our advantage quite a bit, especially when it comes to _wrapping around_ vampires to make it harder for them to grab us." Kate let out a snarl that had B choking on laughter. Eleazar tried to give B a disapproving look, but he couldn't fight down his smile. "We also have some magic at our disposal when it comes to shifting and the like. I'm sure Kate remembers what happened on the full moon…" B hopped into the air, flipping over Kate's head as Kate attempted to charge her. "You really need to work on your impulse control," B tutted as Kate turned, looking ready to charge her again.

"Well if you weren't such a damn tease, I wouldn't have impulse control problems," Kate grumbled.

"Yes you would!" Irina, Tanya, and Carmen all responded immediately from inside. B had to fight down laughter again as Kate threw a glare back towards the house.

"Traitors!" Kate shot back, then focused on B. "So, Isabella, do you wanna try _wrapping yourself_ around me?"

"Tempting," B said, pretending to consider it. While it _was_ quite tempting, B wasn't going to give in. No matter how much B craved Kate, Kate had to earn her. It was the way her people worked. "But no. I think I'd rather attempt wrapping around Eleazar first."

"Hell no!" Kate lunged, and B darted over the railing so Kate wouldn't destroy any part of the house. Soon B was running, Kate chasing after her with a strong determination, although both were keeping close to the house, just in case.

"Wait, what about training?" Eleazar called after them, but neither seemed to hear him, too focused on the game of chase and catch they were playing. Throwing his hands up in the air, he started to mutter about dangers and responsibilities, but Carmen placed a hand on his shoulder, calming the man as she turned him around to face her.

"They'll come inside eventually, my love. For now, just let them play. It's been a stressful morning for the both of them," Carmen murmured, running her hands through his hair and kissing him on the lips.

Eleazar relaxed, although he still seemed to be put out. "Fine. But we _will_ start working on dealing with this threat. Today."

"Of course," Carmen agreed with a nod and a loving smile as Eleazar's arm wrapped around her waist. "But for now...how about we go upstairs?"

Completely focused on his mate, Eleazar let out a hungry growl, scooping up Carmen into his arms and rushing her to their room. It would be good, he reasoned, for he and his mate to have some fun as well. Besides, who was he to ever turn down his mate?


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

While B was still a little disgusted from the details of what she heard going on upstairs, she came back into the house with only a slightly nauseous look on her face.

"You better get used to it, because we'll be doing much kinkier stuff soon enough, and we won't stick to the bedroom," Kate said with a leer and a slap to B's ass as she sauntered past her, the door swinging shut behind her.

"Getting a little cocky, aren't we?" B asked tauntingly, to which Kate turned to her and smirked.

"You're going to be mine in every was Isabella, there's no doubt about it," Kate purred as she slinked towards B, pushing her to move backwards until she had B caged against the wall with an arm on either side of B's head, the length of her body pressed flush against her mate. "You _will_ give in."

"Mm, can't wait," B replied, running her hands up Kate's body until she cupped the back of the vampire's neck. B shifted so that her body arched into the blonde and her leg slid between Kate's, pressing upwards. Kate let out a low sound, a mix between a growl and a purr. In that moment, she was completely at B's mercy, and would have done anything the shifter asked. She let B take the lead, not wanting to scare her mate off by moving too fast, her entire body aching for B's touch.

"Isabella," Kate breathed, her eyes fluttering closed as B ran her lips up Kate's neck.

"Do you know what I have to say, Kate?" B whispered huskily in her ear as her hands trailed down Kate's body with a firm touch, making Kate shudder with desire as B's hands skated over her breasts and down her sides to linger on her waist.

"What?" Kate's voice was hoarse with desire, and she was sure she was making dents in the wall from how forcefully she was leaning against it.

"Overconfidence is a bitch."

Kate's eyes snapped open just in time for her to see B shift into cat form, and then B was darting between Kate's legs and away, leaving Kate a panting and horny mess.

"Damn it!" Kate groaned, slamming her head against the wall. She definitely made a dent that time as plaster rained down on her, but she didn't care. How could she have not seen that coming?

B shifted back at the steps so she could say, "By the way, I'm thinking about staying in a guest room tonight...I need to _take care_ of myself." True, she had no idea what to do even on her own body since she had never felt any sexual urges until Kate came along, but after what she had done to Kate, and her own body's reaction, B figured it would be good to start now. She was way too worked up, and she didn't think that she would settle down anytime soon.

Letting out a low growl, Kate muttered as low as she could, "You're not the only one."

B smirked, having heard every word, and was about to run upstairs to see if that cold shower thing was true, but then Carmen appeared at the top of the steps and gestured for B to follow her. Curious, and more than willing to do what was asked of her for the kind woman who cooked the best food B had ever tasted, B changed her plans so she could see what was going on with Carmen instead.

"What is it, Carmen?" B asked as Carmen closed the door behind her after B entered her bedroom. B made sure to keep her face blank, despite knowing all that happened, for a very long time, until just a few minutes earlier.

"Well, I noticed how much you love to read, and I was wondering…" Carmen paused, gesturing for B to take a seat, and B couldn't help but make a face and shake her head vigorously. "Is something wrong?"

"No offense, but...I know what you guys were doing up here in that bed, and I'd really just...I'd rather not," B mumbled, looking away as she flushed a dark red. God, this was so fucking awkward.

"You know what we did on the bed?" Carmen repeated, puzzled. Not because she had no idea what B was talking about, but because she knew how far away B had been with Kate.

B nodded, still unable to look at her. "And in the shower, on the floor, against that wall…" Damn, now B was making herself feel sick. "Is there anywhere you guys didn't, y'know...do it?" She risked a look up to see Carmen's calculating expression. "I really don't mean to offend you, I swear, but I just––"

"Don't worry, I'm not offended. I'm just confused," Carmen quickly assured the girl, and now B was confused as to why Carmen was confused, which made her head hurt. "This room is heavily soundproofed. Even if you were in the house, it should have at least been incredibly muffled, even with us at our loudest."

"Oh." B turned an even brighter red, shrugging her shoulders. "Well, that's a vampire's hearing. A cat shifter's is better."

Carmen nodded thoughtfully. "I'm going to have to talk to Eleazar about this. Even with his little test, he didn't do a very good job gauging your capability." _No wonder B could hear whatever was approaching them even when Kate couldn't._ Getting back on track, Carmen purposely cleared her throat to get the attention of the clearly flustered brunette. "Anyways, my and Eleazar's sex life isn't why I called you in here." Carmen almost felt sorry for B now, who didn't look like she could get any redder. "I called you in here because I was wondering if you would like me, and possibly Irina, Tanya, or Kate, to teach you some other languages as well." She had been there to see B's joy at simply obtaining a kindle and had heard a few words from Kate about how much B enjoyed learning how to read, and she wanted to nurture that joy and excitement. It was clear that she was doing the right thing, because B brightened immediately, eyes shining with an excitement that made joy swell in Carmen's own heart.

"Are you serious? That would be so awesome!" B squealed, bouncing on the balls of her feet. "This is the coolest thing ever!" At that, B flung herself at Carmen, wrapping her arms around the taller woman in a hug. Carmen blinked, overcome with emotion, as she carefully hugged the girl back, holding on until B pulled away. "I know you know Spanish, seeing as it's your native language, but what other languages can I learn?"

"Well, we've learned a lot of different languages over the years, but Kate's, Irina's, and Tanya's native language is Slovak," Carmen replied, pulling her hands behind her back as she realized just how good it felt to have the girl in her arms. B really did feel like her child.

B looked like a child too, when her eyes lit up with an evil light as she thought about Kate's surprise––and arousal, B would make sure of it––when B started talking to Kate in her native tongue. "I'd like to start with Slovak and Spanish, if that's okay," B said shyly. "But only if you don't tell Kate, and you make Irina and Tanya promise too if they're willing to help."

Carmen had to smile. She had always thought Kate was the worst with all her teasing, but B certainly gave the blonde a run for her money. It showed just how much, seeing as Kate didn't even seem to have time to tease anyone but her mate anymore. "You have my word."

B remembered what she heard Carmen say earlier, and with another shy smile, she asked, "Also, what does _mija_ mean?"

At B's innocent question, Carmen felt her throat get tight, and she felt a slight trickle of fear. Just because B had opened up to them didn't mean that B would react well, after all. Still, she didn't want to lie to the girl, so Carmen murmured, " _Mija_ means daughter. I didn't mean to call you that at the time, but I will admit, in the short time we've known each other, I'm already starting to see you as…" she trailed off, seeing tears start to build in B's eyes. Before she could even try to apologize, B flung herself at the Spanish vampire once more, burying her face in Carmen's chest.

"Thank you," she murmured in a hoarse voice. "I...I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm so happy...I can't…" B started to sob, but it was out of happiness. She couldn't believe this was happening, not just because they were vampires, the very thing she had hated for so long, but because she had only met them a little while ago, and already, they filled a void that B had been pretending didn't exist for so many years. Carmen really was starting to feel like a mother, Eleazar some strange mix of a father and brother, Tanya and Irina sisters, and Kate...well, it was obvious what B felt about her mate.

They would never replace the family she had lost, but they had become her family none the less. With them, she felt like she was finally home.

Overwhelmed with her own emotions, Carmen hugged B as tightly as she dared, kissing the girl on the top of her head. "Thank you, _mija,_ " she whispered so incredibly softly, even she barely heard her words. But B did, and it made her cry a little bit harder.

Before another word could be said between them, the door broke open, a freaked out Kate rushing in. The two girls broke apart, staring at Kate in shock as Kate stared at them. In under a second, she took in the scene, noticing that B was covered in Carmen's scent, the position they were in, and the tears streaming down B's face. Kate couldn't figure out what was going on, and her rampantly running instincts sure weren't helping things. But since Carmen's scent was still enveloping her Isabella, she decided to try for protective anger.

"What the hell––" Kate started to roar, but B was suddenly between them, getting in Kate's face.

"Don't you dare start, Katrina Denali. Don't. You. Dare!" B growled, eyes flashing dangerously. For a moment, all Kate's instinct-driven brain could think about was how sexy B looked right then, and how much she wanted to pin B against the wall and rub herself all over her, replacing Carmen's scent with her own. Somehow sensing Kate's thoughts as Kate took a step towards her, B slugged her in the arm. "Don't even try it. They had sex against that wall and I don't want to touch it, let alone have my body against it."

B's words were enough to startle Kate into a pause, and she remembered why she had busted in here in the first place when B wiped at her eyes. "I heard you crying––" Kate started, hands moving towards B to pull the girl against her and comfort her.

Instead, B shoved her hands away and shouted, "We were having a fucking family moment, damn it!"

"Oh, um...oh." Now Kate was bewildered, and she now felt that instinctual frustration at being denied by her mate. Not to mention she was still all lusty, and still needed to erase Carmen's scent with her own. "I, uh...sorry?"

"You better be," B grumbled, stomping towards her. "Interrupting our moment, our conversation...what's next?"

"I...don't know?" Kate asked unsurely, startled into taking a step backwards when B threw up her hands.

"Ugh! Fuck it. You know what you need to do? Go downstairs, maybe out of the house. Hunt, talk to the family you've been practically ignoring since I came along, maybe do a little catch up with them. But how about you don't eavesdrop, and stop hovering every single second of every day?" B pushed Kate out the door, who was getting more and more dumbfounded by the second. At the last moment, B grabbed Kate's arm and twirled her around to face B, taking Kate's face in her hands and giving her a strong, insistent, passionate kiss. "Thank you for understanding," B continued, now incredibly breathless and more than a little turned on. "You really are the best thing that ever happened to me. Now, let us get back to our conversation, and if you don't interrupt or cause trouble again, there will be another reward for you later."

Kate nodded dazedly, so out of it she wasn't even sure she would be able to form any words. B caressed her face once, eyes raking down her body, and with a gorgeous smile, B slammed the door in Kate's face.

It was only when Kate turned and wandered away from the door that B groaned, throwing up her hands once more as she stomped over to the bed, flopping herself down on it with exhaustion. "Ugh, women! Always needing to protect me, being so damn considerate and worried..." B muttered, putting her head in her hands.

Carmen cleared her throat, and B looked up to find the Spanish vampire with her arms crossed and eyebrows raised.

"No offense," B quickly tried to assure her. "I just meant––"

"I know, _mija,_ " Carmen said with a wicked smile. "I was just going to point out, the bed that you're now sitting on...wasn't there a reason you didn't want to sit on it?"

Realizing what she had so thoughtlessly done, B jumped to her feet. "OH EW!"

Carmen couldn't help it. She tilted her head back and laughed.


	23. Chapter 23

Author's Note: I know, I know, horribly short chapter, and a horrible cliffhanger. Not my fault...well, for the most part...things are a little hectic right now.

Chapter 23

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Irina exclaimed, giving Kate a look that questioned her sister's sanity.

"Look, it's just been like eleven hours since Carmen stole my mate for whatever the hell they're doing up there. I want her back, and I want her fed," Kate said with a pout, crossing her arms over her chest.

"So why don't you go get her?" Irina asked, frustrated with Kate's indecisiveness. Her sister had been pacing for the last two hours nonstop before deciding to hand her problem over to Irina.

"Because she promised me a reward if I didn't interrupt, and I'm not risking that," Kate replied, giving Irina a look that told her she wouldn't back down, not for this. Of course, Irina didn't expect her to, the perv.

"Just go, Irina," Tanya piped up dryly. "The faster you get B down here, the faster Kate will have someone else to pester."

"Fine." With a huff, Irina went up the stairs to Carmen's room and knocked, and it only took a few seconds for the door to open. Finding herself looking at Carmen, with B pouring over some books from where she was safely perched on the back of a chair, Irina gave Carmen a questioning look. Did B really just stay up here to read?

"Perfect timing, Irina, I was wondering if you could come in for a moment," Carmen said with a sly smile, motioning her inside.

"Well, Kate was going a bit stir crazy downstairs without her mate, and since she was scared of losing her reward...here I am," Irina said, focusing on B, and caught the brunette's mouth quirking up in a small smirk.

"I feel bad for you, Kate's crazy enough as it is," B said teasingly, making Irina laugh.

"You're the one who's mated to her," Irina shot back, then turned to Carmen. "So what's going on? Why is B holed up in your room anyways?"

At Irina's question, Carmen launched into an explanation about teaching B different languages, how fast B was already learning Spanish, and how she wanted to learn Slovak to surprise Kate, which was where Tanya or Irina came in since it was their first language. Irina found herself smirking when she caught the wicked glint in B's eyes, and quickly agreed to help B. They then spent another hour going over the basics of the language, B amazing Irina at her learning ability, which easily rivaled a vampire's.

They were only interrupted by a knock at the door, and the door was opened to reveal a frazzled looking Tanya. "Guess who's going crazier than I thought possible after a certain someone didn't return with her mate?" she asked dryly. Her arms crossed over her chest, foot tapping with obvious annoyance since she had been left alone with the crazy girl in question; Eleazar had gone out to patrol and try to gather some more clues.

"Does her name start with a K?" B replied with a short laugh before hopping off the back of the chair she was still perched on to slip by Tanya and glide down the stairs. She stopped at the doorway with arched brows as she found Kate pacing back and forth, looking beyond frustrated. Her eyes were a glittering black despite B knowing she had fed only a few hours ago, and B realized it must be the vampiric instincts riding her vampire. Feeling sorry for leaving Kate alone so long, B took a step into Kate's view. Kate froze before jumping at her, and B wouldn't have tried to dodge even if she knew Kate would have taken them right through the wall.

Instead, Kate stopped right as their bodies pressed together, wrapping her arms tightly around B and letting out a low groan of relief as she buried her face in B's neck, inhaling deeply. While it was hard for B to be away from Kate, and even at her most absorbed she found herself still missing the vampire's presence, B was worried about how less than half a day apart, in the same house no less, seemed to affect the blonde woman. Maybe she should ask Eleazar or Carmen about their own mating bond next time she got one of them alone.

Without warning, Kate picked B up, lifting her until B's legs could wrap around her waist. When Kate looked up into her with those black eyes, B realized just how close to losing it Kate was.

"I'm here," B murmured lowly, soothingly, as she twined her arms around Kate's neck and rested her forehead against the blonde's. "Come on, sexy. Come back."

Slowly, Kate's eyes started to lighten, and B felt the unyielding body she was wrapped around start to relax. Tightening her hold around Kate's neck, B rubbed her cheek against Kate's and purred, marking Kate with her scent and vice versa. Kate let out a breath that she had been holding for who knows how long and walked backwards until she could drop herself on the couch, pulling B with her so B ended up in her lap.

"Mm, babe," B purred, leaning in to nibble on Kate's lower lip when Kate tightened her grip on her. Kate let out a low rumble and nuzzled her, and it was only when one of Kate's hands wandered up B's body to grope one of her breasts that B realized Kate was back to normal.

Pulling back, she gave Kate a look. "Really?"

Kate gave B an impish grin, unrepentant. "What can I say? When your mate falls into your lap like this, a girl's gotta take advantage," she purred, slipping the hand that wasn't still occupied with B's breast up the back of B's shirt. Not only did the cool hand against her overheated skin feel good, but just the fact that it was B's mate was enough to make B shiver, eyes glinting gold with lust. She never had gotten that cold shower…

Leaning in, B softly pressed her lips against Kate's. "You know, I'm not truly your mate until you mark me," B murmured, so with every word her lips brushed against Kate's, teasing her.

"Oh, I'll mark you alright," Kate growled as she ran the hand up B's shirt higher, her hand pressing against her back, right between her shoulder blades. Pushing B into her, Kate was about to give B another kiss, but B pulled away, placing her hand over Kate's mouth.

"But what about my reward?" Kate's complaint was muffled, but B understood perfectly.

"Well, I did have something planned, but since you decided to grope my breast...that can be your reward instead," B said, hopping off of Kate's lap with a small laugh. Kate stood up with her, and without warning, lunged at B. Once again, B dodged, and this led to another chase.

"Not in the house!" Irina, Tanya, and Carmen shouted from upstairs, so with a flip, B managed to get to the door and pressed it open so she could slip out as Kate all but barreled past her, somehow managing to still look graceful.

They must have run around the yard for a half hour before Carmen called them back inside, having been alerted to B's growling stomach. B taunted Kate for her inability to catch her for their walk back and when they were in the house, and it wasn't until Carmen put a plate of food in front of her that B shut up about it.

Kate watched B eat with joy, and felt herself get a little sulky as she realized how many meals Kate hadn't provided for her mate. She got that Carmen was starting to see B as her daughter, having gotten an earful from both of her sisters, but still. Kate wanted to feed B too!

With that thought driving her, Kate stole B's fork and speared some type of vegetable dish thingy on B's plate and held it out for B, leaning towards her mate in the process. "Say ahh," Kate said with her flirtiest smile, and was rewarded with one of B's blushes as she looked from the food, to Kate's face, then to Kate's exposed cleavage, then back up to the fork, before slowly, as if being pulled, her gaze went to Kate's breasts again. B was frozen; there was nowhere safe to look, Kate filled her vision completely.

Sensing her mate's weakness, Kate went in for the kill. "Isabella, what's wrong? I know how much you like to eat," she purred, leaning in even more so as she placed a hand on B's thigh, pressing the fork against B's lips and her breasts against B's arm. She could hear B's heart pounding erratically before she even brought her lips to her mate's ear, rubbing B's thigh as she did so. "Perhaps there's something else you want to eat instead?"

For a long moment, B wasn't sure what she was staring at, but she could almost feel herself give in. After getting both of them so riled up twice in one day without any kind of relief...well, apparently third time's the charm. B knew, without a doubt, that if she weren't still sitting at the table with Carmen, Tanya, and Irina, she would have given in to Kate and let her do pretty much anything to her. Talk about a stupid end to the chase; B was like a dumb little rabbit who decided to wander into the fox's den, only B would do so gladly. She wasn't even sure if she was breathing as her mind raced with thoughts of what else she would rather eat, which brought her to thoughts of both of them naked with B between...

B was saved from Kate as the back door swung open, and in stepped a grim looking Eleazar. Kate eased off of B a little, but was still way too close for B to think straight. Despite that, something in Eleazar's dark eyes made B uneasy.

Her fears were confirmed when Eleazar said, "I found something. Something everyone might want to see."


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

That "something" as it turns out, was a ring of crushed brimstone drenched in blood, with the ground inside the ring scorched black. The blood wasn't desirable to anyone in the least, as there was clearly something wrong with it. And it smelled fucking awful. B scrunched her nose up and tried not to breathe in the awful stench, but it was near impossible, seeing as B actually needed to breathe and would constantly have to gasp in a lungful of air, only to choke and cough when she practically tasted the nastiness that hung in the air from the ring. It was impossible to catch any other scents beyond the rotten egg and sickly, burnt copper that came from the brimstone, and B turned to bury her nose in Kate's shoulder so she could smell and taste warm chocolate and cinnamon instead. A tense Kate held her breath as well as she rubbed B's back soothingly. If the smell was this bad for her, Kate wondered just how bad it was for her little Kitten...but what really worried Kate right now was what this ring meant for her mate and family.

"What does this mean?" Tanya asked tensely, clearly having the same fears.

"I'm not sure," Eleazar admitted in a soft voice, never removing his eyes from the ring. "Well, not completely. I have seen something like this once before back when I was in the Volturi."

"Well what was it?" Kate snapped, her instincts suddenly in protective overdrive at the mention of the coven who had taken her mother from her and her sisters. Now B had to help calm Kate down, so she wrapped her arms around Kate's middle and kissed Kate's collarbone, letting her know everything was okay, at least for now.

It wasn't okay; not only were her instincts screaming at Kate to protect her mate from the threat, but she didn't even know what that threat was, and now the Volturi might be thrown into the equation, who might try to take B...while her mate seemed to understand her needs and know how to keep her calm––for the most part––B didn't seem to understand just how protective vampires were of their mates. While any mated vampire would be in protective overdrive right now, as was clear by the way Carmen was cuddled into Eleazar's side, supporting him, protecting him, even as Eleazar pulled her closer to do the same, Kate had it worse. Kate had it worse, because here was her mate...unmarked. B did carry traces of Kate's scent, but it wasn't enough for the instinctual beast within her. It was those instincts that were driving Kate to be so crazy and over protective, what drove Kate to need to stick so close to B every moment of every day. B was an _unmarked mate._ Even her sisters didn't understand what a big deal it was, but Eleazar did.

Before he had left to find whatever the fuck this was, he had taken Kate aside and talked to her about it while she had hunted. He had admitted that even Carmen hadn't gotten it in the days before he had claimed her, because while the instinct rode her and she was just as possessive, she was the submissive one in the pairing. Kate, like Eleazar, were the dominant ones, and Eleazar had felt like he would go mad himself just in the two days after he had met Carmen and not marked her, and here Kate was going on so much longer, with so much less. Eleazar had been able to scent mark Carmen, which soothed him quite a bit back then, and it had been enough for him to control himself until he could bite her.

But B...B was fragile, wasn't a vampire, and wasn't marked in any way. Kate didn't even know if she _could_ mark her mate, because she didn't know if she could bite without getting any venom in the wound, and what that venom would do to B. It caused her instincts to fight her, and her body always was at war with herself. While a newly mated and marked pair were a bit crazy and possessive for their first few months, being around an unmarked mated pair was so much worse.

Being marked meant B was claimed, and for the rest of B's life––which Kate would make sure would never end––B would carry around a hint of her scent so vampires would know that she belonged to someone. But for as long as B was unmarked, she was automatically put in more danger. Technically, while punishable by death if someone tried, someone could steal her mate away, maybe even claim her for their own. And if B got in trouble, Kate wouldn't have the advantages of a mating bite to help track her down.

Not able to mark her mate was bad enough on its own, but now there was some kind of danger coming for them, and it made her instincts drive Kate even crazier. If it wasn't for her own feelings and thoughts on the matter, if she would ever let her instincts take complete control, Kate would have bitten B whether she wanted to or not.

But Kate wasn't that kind of woman. She wanted B to want her, want her mark, and she wanted B safe...even from her own bite. And now, on top of all of her own personal madness, she was faced with even more evidence of a threat, even if she didn't know what that threat was or what it wanted.

"Well, the only time I had come across this before, it was a little simpler. Someone had drawn on the floor in blood, and there were candles…" Eleazar started, fighting the memory of that dark day.

"Wait, you're making it sound like––" Irina started, clearly uneasy at the direction her own thoughts had taken.

"A summoning?" Eleazar asked bitterly. "You would be correct. Around two hundred years ago, there was a vampire who liked to dabble in the dark arts. He believed himself to be some kind of sorcerer."

"And?" Tanya asked, her voice both coaxing and commanding.

"He was getting a little too fanatical, didn't care who he killed or sacrificed in his attempts to make himself stronger. By the time the Volturi got there to destroy him, something else...something whose scent none of us could recognize, already had. All that was left was a pile of black ash, and the summoning circle."

Kate's eyes widened, arms tightening around B as she let out a furious hiss. "You mean to tell me someone summoned a fucking demon that's now after us?"

"I can't say for sure. As I said, I have only seen something like this once before," Eleazar muttered, looking away. Carmen cupped his face in her hand and turned her mate's head to look at her, murmuring words of comfort.

Feeling sick to her stomach, B rushed forward and kicked at the brimstone, and everyone let out a shout of horror as she broke the ring...but nothing happened, save for the heavy feeling in the air starting to dissipate.

"What were you thinking?" Kate demanded fearfully, pulling the girl back to her. Her panicking eyes ran over B's body as if she expected the girl to come back to her covered in wounds.

B felt her body relax as the feeling of wrongness left the forest. "I have magic too," she murmured softly, burying back into Kate. "Mine can counter most dark magics in existence, and...I wanted it gone. Whatever was attached to it should be gone now too."

Kate frowned at the destroyed circle, her worried eyes moving to each member of her family as she held her mate in her arms. Was it really that simple?

Tanya still seemed to be disturbed by what they had come across, as she made a quick decision. "Maybe it's time to visit our cousins in Forks. I believe we all could use a little vacation and get away from things."

Irina, Carmen, and Eleazar nodded in agreement, but Kate turned to her mate first, pulling the girl away from her body to look questioningly into B's eyes. It was only when her Kitten nodded in her own agreement that Kate looked back to Tanya and gave her sister a nod of agreement as well.

"Right, I vote that we get back to the house and start packing. The sooner we leave, the better," Eleazar said with a clap of his hands, trying to get rid of the somber mood.

"I'll go call Carlisle and tell him that we're all going to be stopping by for a visit," Tanya added, taking off, back to the house so she could use the home phone.

"I'm going with her. I suggest you four stay together," Irina said and quickly followed her sister, not quite ready to leave anyone alone just yet. She didn't even want to think about what could have happened to Eleazar if he had encountered that thing that could have come from the brimstone.

"I'd suggest we pack too, but I don't really want to go back to the cabin," Kate said with a touch of dryness to her voice as she looked down at her mate. Kate still had a roomful of her clothes, and B had a few outfits that Tanya and Irina had bought her, but Kate doubted it would be enough.

"We could always buy some along the way," Carmen suggested as she took Eleazar's hand, starting to walk back to the house with Kate and B right behind her. "For now, let's just pack what we have and get ready to go. Sound like a plan?"

"Yeah, sounds good to me," Kate said as B nodded in agreement, still deep in thought from where she was under Kate's arm. She had a bad feeling that despite destroying the circle––which should have banished whatever had been summoned with it––their problems weren't over.

After all, while the demon should be gone, whoever had summoned it was still out there and could easily summon something again. To make matters worse, she knew whatever had been summoned hadn't approached them by coincidence.

Someone, or something, was after them. And while B didn't know what or why, B knew that they had to get away from there.

Hopefully, this trip to Forks would be just what they needed.

Author's Note: Okay, so I thought I'd give a little insight into why Kate was acting so crazy... Also, just so you know, I'm apparently posting too often and can't keep up, so I suggest checking the latest chapter even if the story claims my last update was a day ago. Thanks for reading guys, and please, tell me what you think!


	25. Chapter 25

Author's Note: Ugh...chapters, chapters, so many fucking chapters...but I did it. I fucking did it! Enjoy and tell me what you guys think. Also, certain things are going to be coming up soon, so I'm going to need to know now...what do you guys think about me adding an actual sex scene? Know that it'll be my first time doing it so I have no idea how good it'll be...it's up to you, you lovely, lovely people.

Chapter 25

Packing was easy enough, or so it should have been, until B decided to start messing with Kate again. It started when B went to change outfits in one of the guest bedrooms to get the nasty smell from the brimstone ring off, and when she came back downstairs, it was in a tight, short black skirt and an equally tight golden shirt that hung off both shoulders, clearly showing no bra straps and quite a bit of cleavage.

Unable to help herself, she stopped packing a stared, all but drooling, as B sauntered over to her. "Wanna guess if I have underwear on too?" B asked with a smirk as she strode by Kate to pick up and pack her kindle from the table before purposely bending over to put it in her bag, only a few feet away from Kate.

It took B straightening up for Kate to snap out of her stunned staring, only to cross her arms over her chest, muttering, "Tease."

"You know it," B replied playfully, walking towards the kitchen and running her fingers along the small strip of exposed skin on Kate's stomach. Messing with Kate really was getting to be too much fun.

Snapping out of her brief pout, Kate gave B a look of pure, frustrated desire. "That's it! I can't take anymore!" Kate cried, pouncing on her mate and taking them both to the ground in a flash. She pinned B to the floor, staring into her mate's darkening brown eyes as she got a hint of B's arousal. "Come on, Isabella, just one kiss and grope. I need it," Kate murmured as she leaned down, and amazingly enough, B looked like she was ready to give in, and way more than Kate thought she would.

The timing didn't matter, the possible threat didn't matter...all that mattered was B, and how she tilted her head back as if giving Kate her throat.

"Getting busy on the floor, are you? What happened to packing?" the low, amused voice of Tanya had Kate jerking away from B with a snarl.

"Really?" Kate demanded, glaring at her sister. "Did you just _have_ to interrupt us?"

Before Tanya could answer, B twisted out from under Kate and flipped to her feet. "Maybe next time," B said, throwing a flirty smile over her shoulder that made Kate's entire body ignite with need before flitting off to find Carmen.

Realizing that there wouldn't be another good chance to have B tonight, Kate let out a loud, pained groan as she flopped backwards onto the floor. "This isn't fair!" Kate whined, sounding like a spoiled child. "At this rate, I really am going to die."

"I can tell," Tanya said, still sounding highly amused. "It must be especially hard since it's been so long since you've had sex."

"So why did you have to interrupt us?" Kate moaned, lifting her head up just enough so she could let it fall to the floor with a thump.

"Honestly? Because it's fun to see that someone is actually getting under your skin for once." At Tanya's admission, Kate sat up so she could stare at Tanya with disbelief. Tanya only smirked at her and added, "Think of it as karma for all that teasing you've done for the last thousand years."

"You bitch!" Kate exclaimed, jumping to her feet.

"Relax. It's not like she's going to keep you chasing her forever." Or at the very least, B was going to continue to give in once in awhile before making Kate chase her again. While Tanya could see that B was slowly but surely losing to Kate's advances, it was also clear that B took great joy in making Kate squirm. That moment at the dinner table was proof enough.

"I don't care anymore," Kate growled as she turned away. "I'm gonna go put our stuff in the car. B has to have finished packing everything by now." She stormed off, clearly beyond sexually frustrated, leaving Tanya to watch in amusement. She never thought that the day would come when someone could drive Kate as crazy as she now seemed to be every day. And damn, did Tanya enjoy it.

It seemed that breaking up Bella and Kate had been the last necessary thing to do, because everyone else was already packed and ready to go, now waiting on their front porch without anybody actually saying much.

The family all piled into one van with Tanya in the driver's seat, Eleazar in the passenger's seat, with Irina and Carmen in the middle and Kate and Bella in the back. Everyone was silent and strangely somber, unlike their usual mood whenever they went on any type of trip. B, strangely, was more somber than most, and had become that way the second she had stepped out of the house and started walking toward the van.

Now, B looked through the back window to get one last look at the house, already missing it as Tanya drove away. It was strange, but for all the time they spent there––which admittedly wasn't much, although it was more than B had spent in any other place besides the cabin and her childhood home––there was so much that B hadn't gotten to do. In fact, she hadn't even gotten to see more than a glimpse of Kate's room, and hadn't even slept in the house. She realized quickly that now that they were out of the house, the "no seeing B naked rule" was gone. She hadn't even gotten to hold that over Kate's head yet, damn it.

The more she thought, the more tired B became, and she let out a loud yawn, stretching out in the backseat of the van. Kate absently pulled B into her lap so B could cuddle up against her, which B did without hesitation, resting her head on Kate's chest.

"Love you," B mumbled sleepily.

Kate stared down at B for a long moment, a happy pain in her chest as she tightened her grip on the best mate she could have ever hoped to have. "I love you too, Isabella," Kate murmured, pressing a kiss to the top of B's head. "For the rest of eternity, I will always love you."

Soon B was drifting off to sleep, a happy smile on her face, and Kate just watched her.

No matter where they went or what happened, as long as they were together, Kate knew she would be happy.

The road trip was quiet and tense, and the only content one––save for the one that was sleeping and seemed to be having very pleasant dreams––was Kate. She felt good, knowing that B was in her arms and safe, that B had told Kate she loved her, no matter how sleepy and out of it her Kitten seemed, and they were currently driving away from the site of an incredible danger that came from who knew what.

Now, if only Kate could fix the 'unmarked mate' problem. That ,and Kate needed sex. Lots and lots of sex. Kate was seriously tired of not getting any. If those two problems would just get taken care of, then life would be fucking perfect.

She really needed to figure out how to catch B soon. Kate knew that the second she managed to do so, and on her own ability, B would be all hers. She could see it in the longing way Kate caught B looking at her whenever Kate got close, as if she just wanted to stop the game and throw herself at Kate. But Kate could tell that this chase game was important, and Kate really, really wanted to prove herself.

Kate had to have been either projecting her thoughts incredibly loudly, or a certain was purposely keeping an ear out for them, because the second Tanya's car pulled into the driveway, the Cullens came out to greet them. All of them looked excited and pleased to see the Denalis, regardless of Edward, save for Edward, who wore a very clear look of disgust on his face.

"Welcome, everyone! I'm so glad to see you all again, especially so soon," Carlisle greeted the Denalis with a large smile, first taking Tanya's hand, then moving on to the rest of the coven, stopping at the last two members, Kate and B. He held out his hand unsurely, not out of fear, but out of respect for Kate and her newly found mate. Not to mention that Kate was using both arms to carry B, and Carlisle wasn't sure if they could shake hands even if Kate wanted to.

Kate didn't shake his hand, but gave him a warm smile and a nod. "It's nice to see you again, old friend."

"Emmett, what are you doing just standing there? Help them with their bags!" Esme scolded, jolting her son into action.

"Right, right, I got it!" He hurried to the car and grabbed the last of the luggage––the luggage of Kate and B, since both were a little too tied up to take it themselves.

"Thanks, Em," Kate said with a huge grin at the buff vampire, and the vampire responded with a smile just as big.

"No prob, but you still owe me. You, me, your mate, and video games. When your cat wakes up." At that, he chuckled to himself. "Kate's Cat. Damn am I good."

"Whatever helps you get through the night," Kate teased, following Emmett into the house. "Just be warned, if you're on B's team for almost any game...she's more likely to kill you than the other players."

"Damn, you serious? Well, since you're her mate and all, maybe you should, I dunno, show her the ropes? As her teammate and all," Emmett tried to convince Kate, but Kate shook her head.

"Too bad for you, Isabella and I have a...competitive relationship," Kate purred, looking down at her sleeping mate with darkening eyes even as she started going up the stairs, still following Emmett. "It would be so much better to pit us against one another; I believe it will be the only way for her to get better."

"I better train your mate up fast then," Emmett grumbled.

"Good luck with that," Kate said with a soft laugh. "She's the worst player I've ever seen in all of my years." Just like that, they were in Kate's guest bedroom, and Emmett placed their bags down with a naughty grin.

"You two have fun now. Y'know, once she wakes up and all." Emmett winked, and then he was gone.

 _I'll try,_ Kate thought to herself as she placed Bella down gently on the bed, taking great care in covering her.

"Maybe the reason she hasn't let you mark her yet is because she knows you're not her mate. Because you're _forcing_ yourself on her," a familiar, irritating voice said from the doorway of her room.

Kate gritted her teeth, hands clenching into fists, and turned to face the biggest pain in the ass since...well, since her. Only this particular ass was a pain in a whole different way than Kate was, and was much more likely to piss people off––like now.

"Edward, what the fuck?" Kate hissed in a low voice, knowing that the combination of a loud voice and her anger would definitely wake her mate. "What business do you have, coming into _my_ room, with _my mate_ sleeping in it?" She wanted to shift in front of the bed more to give Edward less to look at, but didn't want to make him think she saw him as a threat. That would only make his ego bigger.

"You do realize that this is _our_ house? Which means that this room isn't yours; if anything, it's Carlisle's," Edward said with a sniff. "And as I said, she hasn't let you mark her, because she knows she _is not_ your mate."

Kate let out a low snarl. "So I guess that means that 'your' room in our house isn't yours either then, huh?" The Denalis had a thing about privacy, which was why they tried soundproofing their rooms as much as they could, and it's also why, in normal circumstances, nobody would go into another's room with permission. But the second Kate got home, she was _so_ trashing the room where Eddie boy stayed. If anything, he should thank her, since it was either his room or his face.

Edward's eyes narrowed as he heard Kate's violent thoughts, and a low growl slipped out of his throat, one that Kate echoed. The tension had clearly gotten to the exhausted feline in the room, because she woke up disoriented and ready to defend Kate to the death.

At the sight of B flipping to her feet, Edward's gaze turned to the shifter. The shifter whose thoughts he couldn't read, the shifter who had been so scared when she had first woken up that day that Edward could _taste_ her fear, the shifter who had actually been _kidnapped_ by Kate out of some crazy belief that she was Kate's mate. He didn't care that his family was okay with it, he was going to get the girl out of Kate's clutches.

Before anything could get even more out of hand, Irina and Tanya appeared in front of Edward, shoving him out of Kate's room with twin looks of fury on their faces.

"Edward, I think you really need to learn to watch your mouth," Tanya told the boy in a deadly calm tone that hinted quite clearly at how dangerous Tanya was at the moment.

"You shouldn't be encouraging her insane behavior in the first place!" Edward hissed back as he got in Tanya's face, eyes narrowed with his own anger. Tanya was about to show him a few things about respect, but then Carlisle got between them. He looked from the two sisters to his son, than to the sister who was currently trying to comfort her freaked out shifter, and sighed at the situation.

"Edward, please go take a walk. Once again Jasper, Emmett, do you think you could go with him?" He didn't get a verbal reply, but both boys flashed into the room, both incredibly grim, especially given their jovial mood only five minutes ago, and managed to usher Edward out of the room. Everyone could hear Rosalie's scathing comment directed at her mind reading brother, but chose to ignore it.

"I really am sorry," Carlisle said, turning back to the sisters and B. "I hate that this is how you are greeted when you were being welcomed into our home."

"Just keep your _son_ under control when he's around me and my mate, and we won't have a problem," Kate stated in a flat, hard voice, one that left no room for argument––not that anyone save for Edward would, especially after what they heard. Just thinking about that jerk made Kate pull a confused and trembling B closer. B had really just been introduced to the Cullens in the worst possible way, and Kate could already tell that she wouldn't be opening up to any of the Cullens anytime soon.

"Right, I'm sure we can all do our best to make sure there will be no more...transgressions," Carlisle said, a tinge of doubt to his voice.

Well, wasn't that fucking convincing.


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26

All Kate could say, was thank fuck for Emmett. He basically saved the Cullens from looking like the family from hell to B. Somehow, despite the fact that B had stayed half hidden behind Kate when they had come down the stairs, Emmett had gotten her out and laughing with his general goofiness. It just figured Kate's favorite Cullen would be B's favorite too.

When Edward did come back, he kept a wide berth of them...but always stayed just close enough so Kate could see Edward's glare. It was clear to everyone that while Emmett was Kate and B's favorite, the two girls' least favorite was none other than the mindreader. In fact, Edward was the least favorite of the entire Denali coven and everyone made that clear.

The next person to help B relax was Esme, who had teamed up with Carmen to help B feel at home, and also helped cook a huge meal. Kate almost went to join them, but B was able to convince Kate that she needed to help B with learning about all of Emmett's video games instead, and managed to keep her distracted until they were done.

After a huge meal that made B feel like she might never be able to move again, B all but rolled out of her chair and into Kate's arms.

"I need to run," B mumbled, making Kate laugh at the sheer desperation that she heard in B's voice. "If I don't, I'll get fat, and I'll never be able to move again."

"I'm not so sure about that...there are plenty of other ways to get exercise, even right upstairs in our bedroom," Kate purred, gazing at B with half lidded eyes as she pulled the girl's body tight against her. Her mind was suddenly filled with images of B naked as she imagined where and when she'd finally get to take her...it was delicious enough that she was already going to be B's first, but––

"You actually plan to deflower her?" Edward's furious shout had everyone jumping with surprise, and a certain shifter blushing profusely, sure it was her thoughts being read. But wait, B realized with a frown, while she had thought about having sex with Kate, it wasn't like it was going to be Kate's first time… "That's beyond disgusting. Someone's virginity is not something you should be taking so lightly; it's something to be treasured and reserved until marriage!"

"Oh, come on, what vampire actually believes that?" Tanya snapped, having had just about enough of a certain vampire boy. "We live forever, and it might be forever before we actually find our mate. If we want to wait around until finding our mate and then marriage before having a single sexual encounter, half of the vampire population would be celibate!"

"Losing one's virginity with one's mate is the right thing to do. Being celibate until meeting your mate only shows your mate how special they are to you," Edward argued, and B was surprised to actually feel...relatable to the guy. Of course, B hadn't even had to wait two decades in life before meeting her mate, and hadn't even felt attraction to another person until Kate came into her life, and vampires were really different from shifters, so maybe they weren't so relatable after all…

"Oh, like you're one to talk?" Kate snarled, tightening her grip on her mate, who was currently the only thing keeping her sane.

"Yes, I am. I haven't had a single encounter of a sexual nature since the day I was born, and I'm not going to until I find my mate," Edward claimed proudly.

 _That must make him a really bad kisser,_ B thought, feeling bad for whoever his mate was going to be. Kate, on the other hand, was a fantastic kisser, and while B didn't want to think about Kate's past conquests, she was quite happy with the results.

"For fucks sake! You don't need to keep hiding it, Eddie boy. We all know you lost your virginity a while ago to that stick lodged up your ass," Kate taunted, making Edward roar, only to get quickly backhanded in the stomach by B as Edward was held back by his brothers. Kate let out a small grunt and rubbed the spot B had hit, giving B a wounded look. "What did you do that for?" she whined.

"Can't you try to be nice?" B chided, trying to keep the peace since they _were_ in someone else's house, and she was pretty sure insulting the head of the household's son wasn't good manners. But she reached over to Kate to rub the spot she had hit as she cuddled into Kate's side, letting Kate know she wasn't actually mad.

"Not when it comes to him," Kate muttered lowly, although everyone could hear her, as she draped an arm over B's shoulders. Thankfully, B didn't feel the need to say or do anything in response to that, so Kate relaxed and nuzzled B's neck. Her mate always smelled so damn _good._ It always made it harder for Kate to control herself, and with each minute Kate spent with her, the harder it got not to jump her.

A low growl from Edward made both her and B stiffen. Kate looked up from B's neck to find Eddie still glaring at her from where he was restrained by Jasper and Emmett. It was clear that a certain asshole didn't like Kate's thoughts. Well, maybe he shouldn't fucking listen to them.

Edward snarled under his breath, and the house was suddenly, deathly quiet. Even the TV, which had been blaring the sounds of cars racing, had been muted. _Deal with it, Fuckward,_ Kate thought, tightening her hold on her mate. _She's mine, I'm going to have my way with her very, very soon, and you need to get over whatever fucking problem you have with it._

B looked between Edward and Kate, trying to calm her mate by stroking her back, but even that didn't seem to help––although it probably stopped Kate from attacking him and ripping off a few limbs. Although even the possibility of preventing an attack seemed unlikely as Edward opened his mouth once more.

Just like that, Rosalie was standing protectively in front of B and Kate, glaring openly at Edward with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Do you need to take another walk?" Rosalie hissed. "Or are you honestly going to insult our _family_ and our _guests_ for whatever reason is going on in that pathetic little brain of yours?"

"That whore––"

Just like that, B launched herself over Rosalie and at Edward with a furious yowl that surprised everyone. Kate seemed to be frozen for a moment as B took Edward to the ground, ripping him right out of his brothers' grasps. They landed on the ground with B on top, her hands wrapped around Edward's throat. Kate could actually hear the cracking as Edward's skin gave way, and Kate was beyond awed. Since when had B been that strong? That awe quickly took a lustful turn, and she gazed at her mate openly and with clear desire.

"Don't you dare call my mate that again, you fucking little prick of a fairy!" B snarled, and Kate's smile widened into a grin. Damn, this was just getting better and better.

Kate was content to just watch her mate completely destroy Edward, but apparently the others didn't think that was a good idea, because Emmett quickly intervened.

"Come on, B, it's time for you to get off of my dear old brother. We can't have you decapitating anyone in the house now, can we?" he said as he wrapped his arms around B's middle and pulled the girl off of Edward, who quickly scrambled up and rubbed at the cracks of her neck. B let out a yowl and tried to grab at Edward again, but Emmett quickly pulled her out of arms reach of him. "See, that wasn't so bad, was it?" Emmett asked cheerfully as he turned to Kate. "Now, let me just give you back your cat. But be careful, she's a little feisty."

"Just the way I like her," Kate purred as she took B back into her arms, which she wrapped tightly around the smaller brunette.

B huffed, grumbling something about how Edward had deserved a lot more than what B had given him for what he called her mate, but stopped when the powerful scent of arousal met her nose.

"So, you finally said the words," Kate murmured as she nuzzled B behind her ear, making the girl shiver and lean back into her body. Neither seemed to notice how Edward was once again taken outside, or even notice that anyone else was even in the room with them. Of course, those people left quickly when they realized what was happening. "That was the very first time you called me your mate."

"Mm...you have no proof," B denied with a soft purr as she tilted her head to the side, giving Kate access to her neck.

Kate's eyes went black at the small act of submission, and she had the strongest urge yet to claim B. It was a powerful desperation that made her shake with need. "I have a perfect vampire memory."

"That's chock full of fantasies. You still have no proof," B said, lifting her neck a little higher as she felt Kate's lips on her skin.

"Well this fantasy is about to become a reality," Kate whispered against B's neck. "You did say that we weren't truly mated until we marked each other, yes?"

"Mm...yes," B breathed.

"Can I mark you, Kitten?"

"Yeah," B breathed, completely lost in Kate––Kate's touch, Kate's scent, Kate's voice...now, more than ever, she was at Kate's disposal. Even if she hadn't gotten all hyped up on fury and hadn't claimed Kate in front of a roomful of vampires, she was beyond ready to give in.

"Will my venom hurt you? Will you be okay?" Kate asked, because even in the clutches of her own passion, she was worried about her mate.

"Yeah... Vampire venom...doesn't affect us. Something about the magic in our blood, it makes the venom useless." B shuddered as she felt Kate's excitement grow as Kate realized that this could really be it, that she was finally going to be able to do what she had been dreaming of since the moment they met.

"I'm going to take you now, Isabella," Kate said darkly, a low, hungry purr to her words that made B go wild.

"Please...no, wait...the chase...gotta chase me," B gasped, even as her mind grew hazy with need. Kate slipped her hands up the front of B's shirt, cool hands skated along B's overheated skin, and B was about to forget all about the chase.

But Kate didn't. Stepping back, she slapped B on the ass once and growled, "Get moving."

B, barely able to think, stumbled towards the back door and shifted half way out. Kate all but lost it when shredded clothes remained behind, knowing B had purposely destroyed them in her shift, and rushed out the door.

B didn't make it very far. Her mind was too jumbled with her need for Kate, and Kate was much too determined and driven to let B get away. Thankfully, they did make it far away from the house so that no one had to listen in before Kate pounced.

This time, Kate took the brown cat to the ground, and they rolled head over tail with Kate protecting B the entire time. The second they stopped, B shifted back to human, and Kate found herself staring at the most gorgeous girl in existence, completely naked.

"Kate, please. Take me," B groaned, and that was all Kate needed to snap into action. Kate started pulling her own clothes off, uncaring if they tore or not, and B was quick to help her, eager to see her Kate just as naked as she was.

Finally, the clothes came off, and as skin met skin, B and Kate lost all control.

Author's note: Next comes the sex scene! Unless some people out there are seriously against it, it's going to happen, so be warned.


	27. Chapter 27

Author's Note: WARNING LOTS OF SEX AHEAD. Also, tell me what you think about the scene. Bad? Good? Should I never write a sex scene again?

Chapter 27

If any of them had plans for taking it slow, those plans were tossed out the window. Their lips clashed, tongues battling for dominance, but B only put up a token resistance before giving into Kate completely. B moaned when Kate won, becoming pliant and submissive as her hands burned into Kate's shoulders.

Without a thought, Kate gathered B's wrists and pinned them above her head as she broke the kiss so B could gasp for some much needed air. For a long, drawn out moment, they stared at each other, seeing the need and love they felt reflected in each other's eyes. Then B's back arched so B's body slid against Kate's, begging for her, and Kate snapped.

Mine, mine, mine, finally mine. Take her, have her, devour her, love her. Kate's mind was a whirlwind, and even in her half crazed state, she knew she had to be gentle, careful...but that didn't mean she wouldn't be rough too.

Kate's free hand traveled down B's side, caressing the naked skin––her collarbone, the side of her breast, her waist, her hip––before slipping down to grab B's ass. Kate kissed B behind the ear as she pulled B's body closer, fitting herself between the shifter's legs. B groaned loudly, hips lifting to grind herself against Kate, but at Kate's low snarl, B forced herself to still, the submissive side of B's nature taking control.

Kate could feel the wet heat against her stomach, and it took everything she had not to go wild and ravage the girl. Instead, reminding herself that there would be plenty of time for the crazy and rough stuff later, Kate kissed her way down B's neck, nipping lightly on the way, making the girl whimper and squirm but try so, so hard to stay still. A part of Kate's nature that she didn't even know existed thrived on that, on the knowledge that her mate would do anything to please her, that B wanted to be dominated.

Tightening her grip on B's hands, Kate let out a hiss of hunger as she finally made it to B's breasts. She pressed against B with her lower body, pinning her so that no new space would come between them, so she could use her free hand to cup one of the perfect breasts, dragging her thumb along the underside of it to make B squirm just a little more. Squeezing lightly, Kate decided to tease the girl. Blowing lightly on B's other breast, Kate circled around B's already hardened nipple at a distance, continuing to get closer and closer, but never actually touching the nipple itself. Leaning down, she kissed the other breast––once again, very far from where B needed it most.

"Please."

It was B's broken plea that made Kate give in, but also lose her grip on her control. Her grip turned rough as she took one nipple between her teeth, the other between two fingers, biting and pinching hard enough to add some pain to B's pleasure.

And B loved it. The sound that tore out of B's throat wasn't something that Kate had heard before, some kind of mix between a purr, a growl, and a whimper of approval, and B arched again, encouraging Kate to take more of B's breast into Kate's mouth. But even then, she wanted, needed more...and showed Kate this by spreading her legs further.

Kate's hand dove between B's legs, and Kate stopped herself just long enough to tease B a little more by sliding a finger along the length of B, not dipping inside. But at the soft whine that slipped from between her mate's lips, Kate shoved a finger into B hard and fast, quickly breaking B's barrier, before stopping. B was panting now, as was Kate, who lifted herself up to hover above the shifter.

"Isabella," Kate said, her voice husky and hoarse, as if she hadn't used it in a very long time.

B's eyes opened, and she seemed to be nearly feral. Even her voice sounded more cat like than human when she said, "If I come, I'm marking you." Claiming you as mine...forever and ever. My vampire. It wasn't just what she wanted, it was a warning. For the first time ever, B felt more cat than human, and knew that she wouldn't be able to control herself.

"Well when I make you come, I'm definitely marking you too," Kate replied with a crooked, cocky grin. She slowly slid the finger still buried inside of B in and out, curling the finger upwards and making B hiss as she tightened around Kate immediately.

"Fuck!" B growled, struggling to free her arms so she could wrap them around her mate and bring her back down, but Kate wasn't having any of it.

"Damn, you're so fucking tight," Kate muttered, leaning down to nip at the spot on B's shoulder where she wanted to mark as she worked to get a second finger inside of her.

Immediately, B settled down with a moan, and Kate realized it wasn't just her ministrations, but her neck's proximity to B's mouth that made B calm down. She leaned closer, testing out her theory, and then snarled as she felt B's tongue on the side of her neck, making Kate's belly clench with her need.

"Harder. Faster. Please, Kate," B rasped as she nipped at Kate's ear, and Kate was quick to comply as her own desires heightened further. The next sound that came out of B's mouth was a howl as Kate picked up the pace, ramming into her with supernatural strength and speed. She could feel how quickly B was suddenly at the peak, and she didn't let up as she shoved B right over the edge, pressing down hard on B's clit with her thumb.

When B came, she screamed Kate's name as she writhed with pleasure, and Kate sunk her teeth into B's shoulder, marking her forever and while her bite made B come again, it made Kate come with her.

B's blood spilled from the room. It wasn't much, but when it touched Kate's tongue, it was the best thing that Kate had ever felt. She didn't want to taste it to sate her thirst, but to feel more of B inside of her. All she took was one swallow of the little trickle, and for the first time ever, Kate's body felt alive. It was buzzing and burning, like an inferno and lightning storm were going off inside of her––but in a good way.

Without thinking, Kate let go of B's wrists to gather the girl up in her arms, bringing the quivering body onto her lap, teeth still buried in B's neck...and then she was gasping herself as she felt B's teeth and fangs slice through her skin, marking Kate the second B had the strength to move. Neither removed their mouths as they finally felt a sense of completeness, so right and vibrant that neither could have imagined such a thing existing until the moment they felt it themselves.

Finally, they each removed their teeth from the bite wound, and while it only took a single lick from Kate before B's wound closed, B herself decided to pay careful attention to the mark she had made, licking and kissing the skin, making Kate shudder and purr.

When the wound had been closed and healed for several minutes, B finally pulled away, proudly inspecting her work. Only, that pride quickly turned into hunger, and she pushed Kate onto the forest floor, kissing her quickly when Kate started to snarl.

"It's my turn," B murmured as she crawled down Kate's body.

Kate's eyes flared with a dark fire as she saw B's head between her legs, eyes still locked on Kate's own. She tangled her hand in B's hair, bringing B closer to the source of Kate's need. "Fine. But don't think that I'm done with you yet."

"Wouldn't dream of it," B purred, right before she bent down and got to work.

LINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINEBREAKLINE

"Fuck." Kate's exclamation of frustration was well warranted, since they were once again interrupted by B's growling stomach. She started to lift herself off of her still deliciously naked mate, only for B to cup the back of her neck and pull her back down. "B, you need to eat," Kate groaned when B started to kiss her way up Kate's neck, making sure to pay extra attention to her new mating mark.

"I can wait a little longer," B insisted, and when Kate tried to protest, she was brought down into another kiss that made her head spin.

"No," Kate gasped at last, breaking away. Never, in a thousand, million, trillion years did Kate think she would be turning down sex, but her mate's needs came first, even when the mate in question tried to ignore them. "Come on, cutie, we need to get some food in you. Then we can continue for as long as you want."

"So you really want to stop? Tell me you can still feel what I do," B said dubiously, gesturing between them with one hand as the other tried to pull Kate back down again.

"Of course I feel it," Kate muttered. In fact, she could almost see it. The electricity that was arcing between them had nothing to do with Kate's power and all to do with their newly formed bond. "But I don't want you passing out on me."

"I've already passed out on you before, and you seemed fine with it," B complained with a low sigh as she reached down between them to trace random patterns on Kate's lower stomach, making Kate's groin clench.

"Yeah, but that time you passed out for an entirely different reason," Kate managed to spit from between gritted teeth as she caught her mate's wandering hand to pin above B once more. Damn, how she wanted to continue. And once she got some food and water into her, they were, no doubt about it, even if Kate had to chase her through the whole damn forest all over again.

"Fine," B huffed and rolled onto her stomach to climb out from under her mate, only to be stopped when Kate's arm wrapped around her middle with a growl from her vampire. "Problem?" B asked dryly, even as she arched her butt back into Kate's pelvis.

She was doing it on purpose, Kate knew that, and she swore that she'd get the girl back for her teasing...later. One more round would be fine, right? Letting out a soft groan, she rubbed the front of her body against B's back, only to stop when a flash through their bond told her that B probably would pass out if they did it again.

"Damn it. Get up." Kate jumped to her feet and looked up at the sky with a frown. "What fucking time is it?" She looked to B for answers, only to find that her mate had already shifted, and unless she counted the grumpy meow from the cat, B wasn't talking. Well, at least B knew that her showing up at the house naked wouldn't get a good reaction from Kate. That was something, wasn't it?

Looking around for her clothes, Kate found nothing remained that was actually wearable, and digging through her pockets, she found nothing remained of her new cell phone save for smashed pieces. Damn it all to hell. Kate wasn't sure which one it would be, but she knew at least one sister was going to kill her for breaking two phones in such a short amount of time.

"Looks like I'm gonna have to run like this, huh?" Kate muttered as she started to jog after her mate, who had already gotten distracted by a passing rabbit, which she had killed and eaten while waiting for Kate. Kate paused as she watched, wondering if B could just hunt out here, but would prefer getting some clothes for both of them and at least good water for B so that if something happened, they wouldn't have to do something like fight naked.

So the two took off to the house, loping at a pace that wasn't slow, but wasn't fast either, and the entire time, they stayed so close that there was constant contact between them. B also kept on throwing glances over at her mate, who was still gloriously naked, and she was seriously considering shifting and seducing her at least one more time, only to realize that they were too close to the house now for her to try.

It was when they came into almost viewing distance of that house that Kate encountered a problem.


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

"What? What's wrong?" Kate asked, instantly on alert when B moved to block Kate from going to the house with a low growl. Worry coursed through her as she thought about her sisters, Carmen and Eleazar, the Cullens...what if that thing really had followed them? What if it had attacked? "Damn it, what's going on?" She tried to move around B, only to get blocked again with another low growl.

Wait. Kate took a deep breath, expanding her senses, and could find nothing wrong. There wasn't even a trickle of fear or worry in the bond, save for Kate's own. In fact, all Kate could feel was lust, and...possessiveness?

"Wait a second, are you telling me that you don't want me going into the house naked?" Kate asked, mouth popping open with disbelief as she got an answering meow. "But...but… you're getting all possessive now? Why?" The bite, it had to have been the bite. Kate shook her head, muttering, "Never mind, I think I get it. But what am I supposed to do? I need clothes, and I'm not letting anyone see you naked either."

B simply looked down at herself pointedly, showing that she was a cat, not human, then looked to an open window on the second floor.

"Oh. Right." All Kate had to do was blink, and B was launching herself with grace into the air. She managed to grab onto the window with her claws, pushing it open, and dropped inside. It didn't take very long for B to come out, now human and clothed, and hop from the window with a bundle of clothes in her hand. She ran over to Kate and handed them over, a smug look on her face.

"Good girl," Kate purred, her arm snaking around B and pulling the girl against her for a quick kiss. Electricity seemed to crackle between them as they started to get a little hot and heavy, but Kate remembered why they were coming back to the house in the first place and pulled herself back.

"Killjoy," B huffed, crossing her arms over her chest as Kate laughed and quickly dressed. The second she finished, B leaned against her, arms still crossed and a glower still on her face. Kate hadn't realized it at first, but just having B touch her eased some kind of anxiety that seemed to come naturally with being newly marked. She couldn't help but wonder if B was feeling it too. A smirk lifted her lips as she realized how much easier it would be to catch her Kitten if that were true.

While Kate wasn't sure, B was definitely feeling it. She had thought that marking Kate would make everything easier for both of them, especially when it came to the sexual tension, but now everything was almost worse. The minute or two that she had taken to grab Kate some clothes had made her anxiety spike to such a degree she actually had nearly convinced herself she would come back to find something had happened to Kate in her brief absence.

Now, the only time she was at peace was when she was touching Kate in some way, and it was already getting old real fast.

As B sulked about her situation, her stomach let out another growl, which made her scowl down at it. What, had she really gotten so used to Carmen's meals that what she had just ate wasn't enough?

Kate let out another laugh and swept the girl up into her arms. "Come, I must get my Kitten fed and watered so we can get back to our earlier activities."

B's entire body heated as she thought back to what had seemed like one long fuckfest. She was so distracted by her memories that she didn't even think of giving Kate some scathing retort like she usually would have done.

So distracted by B's arousal, Kate barely made it through the door, and even as she stumbled into the kitchen, she nearly ran into the table before remembering to stop and put B down. "We require sustenance for the Kitten!" she declared, snapping B out of her head as she realized they were no longer in the forest.

"Coming right up!" Carmen said from the kitchen, soft laughter in her voice as she worked with Esme. She had figured B might be hungry, and having heard B and Kate outside earlier, had already started to cook.

"It's about time you came back," Tanya added dryly from where she had been reading on the couch. "If we hadn't heard the sounds you two were making whenever we went hunting, we would have thought something had happened."

A low, angry rumble came from someone's throat at the thought of someone having listened in. Surprisingly, it wasn't Kate. It was only when both sisters' eyes landed on B that B realized the source was her, and she let the sound die down with an embarrassed blush, sliding down in her seat. Where had that come from?

"Here you go," Esme said, about to place her hand comfortingly on B's shoulder before thinking better of it. Instead, she placed the food and a glass of water in front of the shifter with a sweet smile before walking away.

B dug in, not realizing until she had finished off half of the food just how hungry she actually was. Sex must take a lot more energy than she had realized.

"So, how long were we gone? I hope we didn't miss anything too important," Kate said, resting her hand on B's shoulder to soothe the tension from both of them. B didn't stop eating, but her shoulders visibly relaxed.

"You actually missed surprisingly little, seeing as you two were gone for nearly two days," Tanya said, placing her head in her hand. She nearly smirked at the surprised look on both Kate and B's faces; B even paused and swallowed, looking up at Kate incredulously.

"Hell, no wonder you were ready to pass out on me," Kate said, looking down at B with a kind of awed shock.

"I take it you two didn't realize how long you were gone?" Tanya asked, drawing both pairs of surprised eyes to her.

"Not really. I figured we had spent the night outside at the most," Kate admitted. While she felt quite a bit of admiration for her mate before, it impossibly grew as she realized that B had kept up with a vampiric succubus for nearly forty eight hours. Seeing as a succubus could survive longer without blood depending on how much sex she had, Kate could have continued longer, but even regular vampires couldn't last a day with a succubus before needing some kind of break.

"I guess that explains why I'm so hungry," B mumbled before polishing off the rest of her meal.

"Did you feel anything interesting while you were out there?" Tanya asked, suddenly intense, before giving B a playful smile. "Besides my sister, I mean."

B shook her head, not even blushing at Tanya's comment. "No. The forest just...felt like the forest. It was really nice." Much better than having that underlying fear, that sense of uneasiness, that B had had back in Denali. B wondered if whatever was up there really was gone, and it worried her. She loved the forest, the cabin, the house...all already held such wonderful memories for her. She really didn't want whatever the thing out there was to continue to make her fear the area.

"Well, that's good. It seems that this vacation is working itself out so far," Tanya said, trying not to show just how relieved she felt at B's words. After all, since B was the only one that seemed to be able to sense whatever the thing had been, Tanya had had no idea if her coven or the Cullens had been safe in her absence.

"Mm, my mate is certainly much more than good," Kate murmured, draping her arms around B's shoulders as she leaned against the shifter's back. She nuzzled B's neck and kissed the mark Kate had made, making the girl shudder as a bolt of pure need rushed through her.

"Kate, you're really not helping," B spat through gritted teeth, fighting the urge to just turn around and jump Kate right there in the dining room. The only thing that managed to stop her was the knowledge that Tanya, Carmen, and Esme were downstairs...although she didn't know why there weren't any other vampires in the house.

Almost as if Kate had read her mind, Kate stopped chuckling at B's expense and looked back up at Tanya. "Hey, where is everybody anyways?"

"Eleazar and Carlisle are off discussing what B could have sensed and reading through every book on the subject they can find in some archived library a ways from here, Irina and the others are off hunting, and Edward has been banned from the house until he can come in here without his attitude."

"Good," B growled, lips lifting up in a snarl as she remembered what Edward had called her mate. Just thinking about it made her fangs and claws lengthen as her feline side came out. "I'm not sure if I'd be able to hold myself back if he came in here without an apology, and not some half assed one either."

"Ooh, my little hellcat is coming out to play," Kate purred, turned on at her mate's feisty nature. She could tell that B was strong enough to go a few more rounds thanks to the food and drink she had been given, and was quick to jump on a chance at continuing. She pressed herself more firmly against B's back as she ran her teeth over B's bite mark, then her tongue.

B whirled on her with a low snarl, knocking over the chair and Kate in the process. "Just you wait. You haven't even seen me go feral," B purred darkly, leaning down to nip at Kate's own mating mark.

"Not in the house!" Tanya was quick to intervene. "We don't need anything broken."

"Fine," B grumbled and sat up as she tried to get a hold of her rather insistent need. Something lashed back and forth in frustration behind her, which caught Kate's attention.

"Wait, what the hell?" Kate asked, sitting up so fast B nearly tumbled off her lap, and would have if she didn't cling to Kate's shoulders. "Since when do you have a tail when you're human?" She grabbed the chocolate brown tail with one hand, only to get a surprising reaction from B, who shuddered and moaned. Kate's eyes darkened to black instantly as she smelled B's arousal even stronger than before. She gave an experimental stroke of the tail, and watched as B clutched tighter at her, muffling her cry against Kate's shoulder. "Oh, this is going to be so much fun."

"What did I just say about not doing it in the house?" Tanya demanded as she smacked Kate in the back of the head. Instinctively, Kate caged B within her arms, despite the fact that she was caught off guard by the furious snarl that came from B as B tried to jump to her feet.

"It's just Tanya, Kitten," Kate murmured softly, and felt B relax.

"Ah, yeah...sorry," B murmured, bewildered by her own reaction.

Tanya shrugged, unconcerned, figuring it was a mixed reaction having to do with B's past and their newly mated status. "It's fine. Now Kate, seriously, take it outside."

"Right," Kate muttered a little sulkily as she stood up, B still in her arms, only to pause and look down, finding the tail had disappeared. "Wait a second, you had a tail...and now it's gone. Since when could you do that?"

B peered up at Kate, her confused expression so cute Kate wanted to kiss the hell out of her, something she held herself back from doing by sheer force of will. It was even harder to let B go when she started squirming, but she managed that too.

"I don't know. I didn't even know doing that was possible," B muttered, trying to get a look at her ass as if the tail would suddenly appear again. "Maybe it's the mating bond that caused it?" B sounded doubtful, even to her own ears. What would growing a tail have to do with mating?

"Maybe we should look into––" Kate didn't even get to finish her suggestion before the back door burst open, and in came Emmett, Rosalie, Alice, Jasper, and Irina.

"Hey Kate, did you finally get some?" Emmett asked cheerfully, throwing his arm around the blonde's shoulders.

There was a sudden furious roar that echoed through the house. Before even any vampire could process what was happening, Emmett was picked up and promptly thrown right through the wall, flying several feet––and breaking quite a few trees––before he could manage to bring himself to a stop.

It was only Kate's quick thinking that stopped B from going after him as she grabbed the furious feline around the waist and pulled the girl into her body tight enough so that no matter how much B twisted, she couldn't escape.

"B. B, baby, calm down. You need to calm down, it's just Emmett," Kate spoke urgently into B's ear as Emmett slowly got to his feet, trying to show that he wasn't a threat while also not trying to show how awesome he thought B was.

Suddenly, as if a switch had been flipped, B went limp in Kate's arms, eyes wide with horrified shock. "Oh, god...Emmett, I'm so––I'm sorry! I don't know why I...I need to make a phone call." B flashed out of Kate's arms and upstairs. Before Kate could even consider following her, B was back, grabbing Kate's hand and dragging the blonde upstairs with her.

Everyone was still frozen in place, but slowly looked at each other with puzzled confusion, wondering what was going on with the younger shifter. Still, nobody could actually voice the question or even break the silence.

Then, Emmett finally spoke. Actually, he didn't just speak, but shouted out, "That was awesome!"


	29. Chapter 29

Author's Note: I'm so sorry for not posting anything for any of my stories until now. Someone asked me to collaborate on a story idea, and it turns out I seriously suck at creating a story or scene when someone asks me to write something. Not to mention my newest story brought on more ideas, which then made me write the beginnings of two new stories, one Bella/Irina, and one Bella/Victoria... Anyways, I'm ashamed, especially since this is all I could get out so far after deciding I was going to focus on my older stories first before I lost the flow and had to reread everything I wrote. Hope you enjoy.

Chapter 29

Thankfully, there was a landline in their room, since Kate's phone was still completely destroyed from their earlier escapades and B didn't want to go downstairs and risk flipping out on someone again. The shifter quickly dialed the only number she knew by heart and put it to her ear, hoping that her sort-of-friend would pick up.

Kate had no idea what was going on or who B was calling...and even worse, she had no idea how to help her. The only thing she could do was hang on to B's hand as she watched her pace back and forth, only turning around to go in the other direction when Kate's and B's connected arms could stretch no farther.

Finally, the ringing of the phone stopped, and a smooth, naturally cocky voice answered. "Hello?"

"Sly! It's me," B said, letting out a breath of relief as she stopped her pacing. She pulled Kate closer to her and wrapped Kate's arm around her waist, leaning into the blonde. "I have a problem. I don't know why, but I've been irritated, and for no reason! Seriously, I growled at Kate's sister, threw Emmett through a wall, and––"

"Whoa there, kid, back up. First of all, hey, B, how are you? I'm doing fine, thanks for asking. Second of all, who the hell are you talking about?" the voice asked, sounding way more amused than worried. Kate frowned at how the girl didn't seem concerned about her mate's panic in the slightest, and was about to grumble about it, but then B actually relaxed with a soft laugh.

"Right. Sorry about that. I'm going okay, save for the whole attacking people thing. Kate is…" B looked up into Kate's excited eyes as she felt Kate's grip on her tighten. Realizing just how much Kate loved hearing B say the word out loud, she smiled and focused back on the phone. "Kate is my mate. She has a sister––"

"Wait, you found your mate? Fuck, you lucky asshole," Sly groaned, and the two girls heard something fall in the background. "I can't wait until I find my mate, I'll get to show her a thing or two about how the big cats play…"

"Sly, focus. I growled at Kate's sister for no reason, and then I threw their cousin Emmett through a wall. I need to know what's wrong with me, and you're the only one I can turn to about this."

"You didn't kill this guy, did you? I know how upset you'd be if you did, and you don't sound like you killed someone."

"No! Emmett's a vampire," B quickly explained.

There was a dead pause on the other side, so long that B wanted to check to see if the phone was still connected. Just as she was trying to figure out how to do that, Sly exploded. "What the fuck B! You're hanging out with bloodsuckers now? How fucking stupid did you get?"

Kate snarled at the insult to her mate, but felt a swell of warmth when B rushed to defend them. "No! You don't understand, they're not like other vampires. They don't kill for sport, and they don't even have red eyes. I would have been on your side until recently, but then I met Kate and...you would have to meet them to understand."

"Yeah, yeah. So, where are you exactly?" Sly asked, sounding more than a little irritated.

"In a town called Forks, it's in Washington. Why?"

"Stay there," was the only answer B got, and then the phone went dead. For a moment, all B could do was stare at the phone in disbelief. She tried to call the number again, but it went straight to voicemail, and she cursed.

"She never even answered what could be wrong with me!" B exclaimed, angry. "God, that reckless, stupid, jerky excuse for a cat…"

"So," Kate started, pulling B tighter against her body. "Who exactly was that?"

Sighing, B dropped the phone back into the receiver and turned around in Kate's arm. "That," she spat, still clearly annoyed at being hung up on, "Was the only person besides my family I've ever felt close to before you came along. She's a sorta friend, seeing as she usually looks out for herself first," B explained, resting her head on Kate's chest and nuzzling her slightly. "She's also a panther shifter, and the one who helped teach me a few things back when I was younger and still getting used to living on the streets."

"I see," Kate muttered, although she wondered who could actually be connected to that cocky voice. "And she can help you?"

"Well, she was supposed to," B huffed with a low growl that Kate found more adorable than threatening, but she kept her mouth shut. "But she not only didn't answer my question, she's also…" At the thought, B pulled back, cocking her head to the side in confusion. "Was it just me, or did it sound like she wanted to come over here?"

"It sounded like that to me." Kate frowned, unsure of how she felt about that. Here was this girl, also a shifter, and the only one who B had felt close to until now. Not to mention this friend was apparently willing to drop everything for B...it made her red flags go up in a protective, newly mated, "she's mine not yours" kind of way.

"Oh god, if Sly comes over here, there's no telling what'll happen," B mumbled worriedly, mostly to herself, as she tried to figure out what could possibly go wrong, or hopefully right, with the crazy panther coming for a visit.

Kate opened her mouth, wanting to prod B to elaborate, only for someone to knock on the door tentatively. Kate moved to open it automatically, only to feel B's grip tighten on her with a furious growl. Just as quickly as B tightened she let go and took a step back, giving Kate a sheepish smile as she held her hands behind her back and nodded encouragingly.

Managing to open the door without B doing much more than twitching, Kate found Tanya standing in the doorway. "Hey, what's up? And let me just suggest, I don't think B's going to react well to any touching of the goods right now."

"I'll keep that in mind," Tanya replied with amusement, but then she frowned, shooting a trembling B a concerned glance––not for her own safety, but simply worry about B. "How did the talk go, did you guys get any answers?"

Ah, right, Kate had forgotten that she had insisted that her room in the Cullen's house be soundproofed as well. Tanya wouldn't have been able to hear anything but muffled words unless B or Kate had shouted. "Not really," Kate said as she shoved her hands in her pockets and leaned against the doorframe. "On an unrelated note, we now have a visitor coming down, although I'm not really sure when."

"That doesn't sound so unrelated to me," Tanya said, playing along, although she had a dry tone to her voice. "What are we looking out for? Can you give me any descriptions?"

"Well, our guest is going to be a female panther shifter named Sly. As for looks…" Kate trailed off, glancing behind her to see if B would give a description, only to find B's attention completely focused on Kate's ass. "While I love knowing your thoughts are probably just as dirty as mine, B, I need to know what your friend looks like," Kate said, her voice much louder than when she had been talking to Tanya. When B still seemed completely riveted, Kate turned around, thinking that would break B's focus. Instead, the girl's gaze only slowly raked up Kate's body before focusing on her breasts, eyes gold. While at any other time Kate would have been happy to indulge in her mate's need, she knew she needed to hang on to her control for just a few more minutes.

Still, that didn't stop her from sauntering over to B in the sexiest way imaginable, much to Tanya's exasperation. B licked her lips, her arousal growing, and she launched herself at her gorgeous blonde mate before Kate got within five feet of her.

 _Oh, the irony. The painful yet delicious irony,_ Kate thought as she pressed her fingers to B's lips, stopping the girl from kissing her like B had done to Kate so many times before, gazing into B's golden eyes, which were feral with lust, pupils slit. Kate also noticed that a brown tail was now thrashing back and forth with frustration as B let out a growl at being denied. Clearly, she was being ridden by her own instincts, and Kate was very happy to know this, although her own instincts to reclaim, take, and reassure were just as overwhelming.

"Tell me what Sly looks like. Then I'll be happy to fuck you until your body gives out again," Kate murmured, eyes pitch black. Tanya wanted to complain about the noise it would cause, but knew telling them to go outside would probably only make B worse, so she had no choice but to keep her mouth shut.

"Long black hair, tall, tanned, hot, golden eyes, cocky smirk on her face, tomboy," B told her shortly, already panting. "Now…" With a ripping sound, Kate's shirt was left in tatters, barely clinging to her body.

"Did you get all that?" Kate growled, her thoughts and hunger completely focused on her mate, and her mate alone.

"Yeah. Now just try not to break anything," Tanya said with a sigh.

A second later, the sounds of some very, very rough sex came from behind the door, barely muffled despite all the soundproofing. From downstairs, she heard Carmen groan uncomfortably and say, "Now I know how B feels with that hearing of hers."

Kate and B were so focused on each other, that they didn't notice anything else. B didn't pay attention to the strange, cold feeling tickling at the back of her mind, and not just because it disappeared as quickly as it came. She was simply so overcome with need that she didn't have the ability to notice anything else. Kate had the very same problem, which was why neither of them noticed when a vampire stopped by, either.

It was out of curiosity after he had scented such a large amount of vampires, and he was quite surprised when he learned of the Denali and Cullen lifestyle. Still, this particular vampire was also very intrigued, and wanted to stay and try the vegetarian lifestyle himself. He was a little worried about his control, of course, which was why the Denalis were the ones who suggested he come back with them when it was time for them to leave––they were a lot more secluded, and unknown, than their cousins. He was charmed when he realized he was being accepted into a coven with open arms, free of suspicion despite them knowing so little about him. Although he was still warned that if he tried to hurt anyone, they would end him in a moment. He then spent the time to get to know not just his own new coven, but the Cullens as well, although he fixated on one Denali blonde in particular, who was clearly flattered and enamored by his attentions.

Of course, he did notice the constant sex going on upstairs, and was assured that he would meet the two missing coven members...on their own time. They explained the little situation they had with their sister and her new mate, and while everyone's eyes were on him as he listened and nodded with understanding, nobody seemed to notice at how his eyes lit up at the mention of B.

While only told the brunette's name and that she wasn't a vampire, he already knew what, and who, she was.

Let's just say, Laurent was more than a little excited at the thought of meeting the cat shifter.


	30. Chapter 30

Author's Note: Sorry it took so long to update. Not only did I have writer's block, but this story is especially hard to write since my computer slows down to sloth levels and sometimes even has to reboot the tab simply because of how long this doc is. But hey, I did it, so here it is!

* * *

Chapter 30

When B walked out of Kate's room nearly three days later, she was greeted by the blood red eyes and a wide smile of an unknown vampire.

"Ah, you must be Isabella! It's such a pleasure to finally meet you!" the vampire said in an excitable french accent, moving in as if he was about to hug the shifter.

Needless to say, B was freaked. She let out a feline screech of fear and jumped away from the threat––not to mention upwards as well––only to be grabbed by Kate, who put the girl safely behind her before whirling to face the vampire with a furiously protective snarl.

"Laurent, I tried to tell you that they weren't going to react well if you greet them like that, no matter how friendly you are!" Irina said as she rushed between Laurent and Kate to stop Kate from slaughtering him. She moved to put a hand on both of their chests, but at B's already frightened state, didn't want to accidentally agitate her any more by touching her sister. Instead, she put both of her hands on Laurent's chest and pushed him back a few steps.

"Nonsense! Everyone reacts well to friendliness!" Laurent said cheerfully, seemingly unperturbed with B and Kate's reactions.

Kate kept her eyes on the nutjob and B safely behind her. If the vampire was going to attack her mate, he'd have to get through her first. "Irina, what the hell? Who the hell is this crazy bastard?"

"This is Laurent, he was a nomad...but now he's a part of our coven," Irina said nervously, glancing back toward the stairs for backup.

"You don't think you could have warned us first?" Kate demanded, nearly shaking with rage as Laurent tried to peer around both her and Irina to get a better look at her mate.

"You _were_ a little...unavailable," Irina said, making Kate grimace. When she realized what Laurent was doing, she elbowed him in the chest, trying to get him to back up and give the two girls some breathing room.

Behind Kate, B was shivering uncontrollably––probably contributing to Kate's irritability––as she kept her hands tightly fisted in Kate's shirt, afraid to let go. Even Kate's scent couldn't completely erase the smell of the other vampire from her nose, and just feeling him nearby was terrifying, even more so than when she had first met Kate.

"Yeah, well, he's scaring B, so he needs to back the fuck off," Kate snapped, sensing her mate's quickly rising fear. She focused on Laurent when Irina shot the shifter a worried frown and tried to press Laurent gently back, only for him not to move. His refusal to get a hint only pissed Kate off more, and she held up her hands, which started crackling with electricity. "Listen here, _Pierre_ , either you get the fuck away from us now, or you're going to get quite a shocking introduction to me."

Laurent's eyebrows arched with delight; a cat shifter _and_ a gifted vampire? He almost wanted to push it, just to see what this Kate could do, but he backed off instead. It wouldn't help if he ended up on the bad side of the coven.

So, having no real choice, Laurent relented and backed up, giving a grin that felt more threatening than cheerful to B. "Fine, fine. But we will get to know each other, yes? After all, we have all the time in the world!" With that, Laurent all but skipped down the stairs and, at Tanya, Carmen, and Eleazar's urging downstairs, right out of the house.

The second he was gone, Kate relaxed and turned to B, wrapping her arms around B's waist as she anxiously tried to catch B's eyes. "You're okay, right?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I think so," B said, but wasn't very convincing, especially since she now gripped the front of Kate's shirt so tightly that it ripped.

"I'm so sorry B, I didn't realize he would react like that. I swear he's a good guy," Irina said, hands hovering as she wanted to comfort her in some way, but between B's own frightened state and Kate's heightened emotions, she wasn't sure how.

"I just...I don't like the way he said my name," B said with a shiver. She felt slimy and disgusting, not to mention terrified.

"Right. I'll go tell him that only Kate is allowed to call you that. Just take your time." Irina said, clearly upset that B was upset, and it made Kate give her a reassuring smile that neither she or B was mad at her. It clearly made Irina feel better before she flashed off.

Focusing back on her mate, Kate cupped B's face and brought the shifter's eyes to hers, searching them. "You don't like the way he said your name?"

Just the memory of the way his voice seemed to caress her full name was enough to make B shudder. "No. I usually hate it when people call me Bella or Isabella, but this...this was so much worse." It felt like she had been violated.

"But you love it when I call you that," Kate said, a cocky smirk on her lips.

"Well, you're my mate," B argued. "It's different."

"You let me call you that even before you knew," Kate said, her smirk growing. When B tried to protest, Kate tilted B's head to the side, brushing her lips over the mating mark, which she knew drove B crazy. B shivered, but this time for a completely different reason. There was a tearing sound, and a large piece of Kate's shirt came away in B's hands. Neither cared, as B only dropped the fabric and slid her hands up Kate's bare stomach, her fingers playing on the cool flesh. "You don't hate it when it's me. You love it when I call you Isabella."

"Mm, yeah," B breathed, her hands moving upwards to grip Kate's shoulders as Kate's hands moved to slip into B's back pockets. She squeezed B's ass as she brought her closer to her, pressing B against the wall at the same time, just needing to feel her mate against her and knowing B needed to feel her just the same.

 _So that means I simply have to make you forget about how that Pierre bastard said your name,_ Kate thought triumphantly, moving her lips upwards so she could kiss B behind the ear. "Oh, Isabella…" Kate breathed. "My Isabella, my mate...mine."

B was panting loudly now, amazed at her own reaction to simple words. She widened her stance so she could pull Kate between her legs, grinding against her. "Say it again," she pleaded, tilting her head back to bare her neck submissively.

Kate's need flared. "You're mine, Isabella. All mine."

"Then take me."

Kate's mouth moved to B's throat, one hand shoving down into B's pants, she did just as her mate wanted.

* * *

"Really now, you two have no control at all, do you?" Tanya asked teasingly when Kate and B came downstairs over an hour later.

"I don't know what you're talking about," B said innocently, trying to play off what she knew every vampire in the house had to have heard.

"Mm hmm, sure," Tanya replied knowingly, giving a smug, proud looking Kate a pointed look. "Just tell me, though...those are some very strange places to rip. It surely can't be by design, can it?"

B glanced over at Kate, only to blush bright red when she realized neither had thought to change Kate's shirt. Now, not only was Kate missing a large chunk of cloth on the front of her shirt, baring quite a bit of her stomach––something that had B wanting to rip off her own shirt so she could force Kate to wear it––but she also had a bunch of rips, which looked suspiciously like claw marks, in the cloth that should have covered both of Kate's shoulders.

"Right, she'll go change," B said, blushing even darker, and since Kate knew that it wasn't a good idea to taunt B right now, she flashed upstairs to change.

"So how's Kate's Cat doing, hm?" Emmett asked from the couch, his trademark grin on his face as he wiggled his eyebrows at her. "Did getting some more make Little B any less cranky?"

B didn't think it was possible, but she found herself blushing even harder. "Ah, um…" Kate came back then, and B leaned back against her in relief. "Emmett, I really am sorry about––"

"Don't worry about it. I've gotten into worse fights with my own family." Emmett's grin widened, and he gave B a conspiratory wink. "Just promise me that we'll wrestle sometime soon, yeah? And not like that, Rose would kill me," he added when Kate let out a possessive growl. "Geez, newly mated whatever, they're all so damn touchy." With that, Emmett rolled his eyes and went back to his game.

"So, B," Carlisle said, catching the shifter's attention. "I was wondering, what scared you so much about Laurent? Was it his red eyes?"

B shifted uncomfortably, not wanting to talk about it with a vampire he hardly knew. Esme seemed to realize this, thank whoever, as she put a hand on Carlisle's arm and gave the man a warning look.

Clearing his throat awkwardly, Carlisle looked away. "Right, never mind then. Perhaps at a later time."

"Yeah, sure," B replied unconvincingly before her eyes brightened as she saw Carmen and Esme bring in heaping plates of food. She quickly sat at the table, Kate shadowing her. It was only when B started eating that Kate dropped the bomb.

"It really has been a while since I last cooked; maybe I should cook for you later tonight," Kate said, rubbing B's shoulders soothingly to help her relax from what Carlisle brought up. Still, it wasn't soothing enough for the latest development, and B choked. Kate's eyes widened with worry and she started pounding B lightly on the back to get her to breathe again.

"No! No, that's okay. Carmen and Esme are already doing enough. And I need you close to me so I don't freak out again," B said quickly, getting a knowing, "You should tell her" look from Carmen that thankfully went unnoticed due to her choking fit.

"Yeah, okay," Kate said, more worried about B then needing to cook for her.

"But there are some things we need to talk about. It might need to be somewhere private, but we _will_ talk about them," Tanya said, standing up. "I want to know more about your friend Sly...and I also want to know about your thoughts on Laurent. Is that okay?"

"What, you mean that Pierre bitch?" Kate asked, looking at her sister with confusion.

"Yes, Kate. That Pierre bitch," Tanya replied dryly. Turning to B, her eyes softened. "Is this all okay with you?"

B swallowed, her throat tight, heart pounding loud enough for everyone to hear as she thought about the French vampire. "Yeah, it's cool. I'll answer whatever you need to know."

"Excellent. While I prefer it be today that we get this information, the exact time and place will be up to you."

At that, B stuffed some more food in her mouth and stood up. "Now. Let's do it now." The faster she got it over with, the better. Maybe then she'd feel less of the fearful burden as well.

Kate gave B a long, measuring look, her hand sliding down B's arm to take B's hand with her own. She knew how crazy their life together had been so far, and it felt like it would only get crazier.

She was not going to leave B alone for a moment, not even for a talk with her own sister. And, thankfully, B seemed grateful for that.


	31. Chapter 31

_Author's Note: Okay, I'm sorry I took so long with this one. Just know that I had to read over two hundred pages double spaced to get back into this story, and that takes a long time. But hey, here it is, and to thank everyone for waiting so patiently, it's extra long (for me, at least). Also, I was wondering, how much sex do you guys even want in this? Do you want a lot, a little, somewhere in between...? It's up to you guys, as long as you don't start expecting no more sex ever since I need at least one more scene, or sex like every five lines. Just like always, thanks for reading, reviewing, and all that._

* * *

Chapter 31

B was quick to start to explain the past between her and Sly the second she, Kate, and Tanya were in Tanya's room, since even Tanya couldn't stand the heavy smell of sex in Kate and B's. She was so quick to talk about Sly, that it was as if she was afraid that Tanya would make her talk about Laurent first, and B wanted to put that off for as long as possible.

As she learned about B's past with Sly, Kate wasn't sure whether to be irritated or grateful. Yeah, this Sly seemed like B's friend, and it looked like Sly had saved B's life on several occasions, but to Kate, they seemed a little too close. It didn't help that B seemed to edit a thing or two out while giving Kate nervous glances, either.

Eventually, B finished, and she found herself looking at Tanya nervously as she leaned back into Kate. Tanya stood in front of them, clearly deep in thought.

"And you can guarantee Sly won't be a threat to us?" Tanya asked at last, fixing her golden eyes on B once more.

B grimaced at that, but knew better than to lie. "Sly...is Sly. I can never guarantee what she will or won't do. But I do know that she wants to protect me, so even if she attacks at first, she calm down when she realizes how much I care about you." She paused for a moment, then added, "Probably."

Tanya sighed lowly as Kate smiled, all but humming with happiness when B admitted how she cared for everyone. She cuddled in close to her mate, nuzzling the bite mark and distracting B so completely, she forgot that she and Tanya weren't done talking.

"Now, I think it's best to talk about Laurent," Tanya said, and B stiffened immediately. Kate let out a grumpy growl, knowing her mate was upset, but also knowing that Pierre needed to be talked about since he was part of their coven now...no matter how much Kate wanted to rip him limb from limb.

"What do you want to know?" B asked, pulling Kate's arms tighter around her. God, who would have thought the whole mating thing would turn her into such a...a...B didn't have a word for it, but she was pretty annoyed with herself right now for becoming so reliant on Kate so fast. Yeah, she knew Kate would protect her, but this whole constant touchy feely clingy thing B had going on was getting on her own nerves. She could stand on her own two feet; she certainly didn't need Kate just to have a conversation.

At that, B stepped out of Kate's embrace to face Tanya head on. Kate frowned, confused, then realized that B was trying to be strong without her. She couldn't help but laugh out loud as only a few seconds passed before B stepped right back into Kate's arms, unable to bear the emotional turmoil that no contact had brought. It seemed to Kate that B might even be taking their new bond worse than Kate.

"Shut up," B muttered with a light elbow to the ribs, sensing Kate's train of thought. "Once Sly is here, she's going to figure this out."

Kate felt a protective flare at the thought of Sly helping to separate them, at least to some degree, and she opened her mouth. Before Kate even spoke, she was sure she was going to say something stupid, and was going to say it anyways, but then a tail flicked over her mouth, prompting it to shut.

"Your tail's back," Kate said with surprise––and, yes, lust, but could Kate really be blamed for that?––as she reached out to brush her fingers along the fur of her mate's tail.

"Mm...yeah," B mumbled, brought out of her own thoughts. Angry, agitated thoughts about what she would do to anyone trying to come between her and Kate, even if B was the one to ask for the help. Yes, there was something seriously wrong with her, but she was definitely going to fix it.

"Focus," Tanya said, realizing they had been so wrapped up in each other neither of them had heard a word she had spoken. "We need to talk about Laurent and why you have such strong feelings when it comes to him."

"It's not just his eyes," B said, glancing away in embarrassment as her fists clenched stubbornly at her sides. Kate wrapped her arms around B in comfort and kissed her behind the ear, fingers catching and playing lightly with her tail. "It's more. It's...um, ah...it's something...ah, fuck." B's eyes grew unfocused, her lips parting. Tanya's pointed glare didn't even make Kate pause, and Tanya was wondering if she should really risk setting B off by throwing something at her nympho sister's head. "Stop that," B hissed, jerking her tail away, but Kate only tightened her grip on B's body and caught the tail again with one hand, a playful grin on her face.

B let out a low feline growl as her instincts to fuck and submit warred with her head, which told her to keep it in her pants and talk about the threat. And next thing the two vampires knew, they were looking at a girl with a tail, fangs, claws, golden eyes, and two cat ears poking out from under her hair, right where her human ears would have been. Just seeing that made Tanya realize that maybe she and the other coven members should have a talk with Sly as well to know what to expect. Kate's mind, on the other hand, went right to the gutter.

"Damn, sexy," Kate blurted, stunned at how gorgeous her mate looked. She wanted to take advantage of the situation before B's new look faded, but instead, B pulled away to focus back on Tanya. B tried to keep her distance, but her tail curled around Kate's wrist, still seeking that contact.

"It's something more," B repeated, trying to ignore how her body hummed with desire for Kate. Her claws pricked her palms, reminding B to loosen her grip or risk making herself bleed; something she really didn't want to risk doing in front of a vampire. "I'm not trying to make it seem like anyone else's judgement isn't sound, of course, but it's...I can't explain it. Yeah, the red eyes freak me out, and I really don't like how he handled our first meeting...there's something else. Something seems off about him."

"Yeah, off in the head," Kate muttered, remembering how he had acted, all those hints he either chose to ignore or was simply too dumb to notice. "I don't know what Irina sees in that Pierre bastard." She instinctively tried to pull B back against her, but B wisely kept her distance so she wouldn't be distracted. Kate would have pursued, but B's tail slipped under Kate's shirt and brushed against her stomach, distracting her.

Tanya stifled a sigh, not wanting to breathe in anymore of her sister's arousal then she had to. "We'll try to keep Laurent away from you two as much as possible while he gets settled. Maybe your feelings will change when his eyes are fully gold; he has expressed quite an interest in our diet."

"Maybe," B agreed, although somewhat doubtfully. "But for now, how about Kate and I do patrols to make sure we don't miss Sly when she visits?" Things would go much more smoothly if B was the one to greet the panther instead of a vampire. Or, even worse, if she was greeted by Laurent.

"Sounds like a plan." Tanya's eyes met Kate's, and the coven leader softened as she saw the love and devotion in her sister's gaze. Tanya swore to herself that she'd make everyone keep an eye on Laurent, because she knew, without a doubt, that Kate would do whatever it took to protect B––even if that meant killing Laurent and possibly damaging her bond with Irina forever. And Tanya would do anything to make sure that didn't happen.

"Let's start now," Kate was quick to add, imagining her and B alone in the forest, completely uninterrupted.

"Fine with me. I'll call Irina to update her on what's going on," Tanya said. And maybe, if Irina wasn't too close to Laurent, Tanya could drop some hints to Irina that Laurent wasn't her mate again. It would be hard on both Tanya and Irina, since Irina was so lonely that she would do anything to imagine she found The One. Yet Tanya knew she was right about their relationship; just looking at B and Kate, or Carmen and Eleazar, or any other mated couple was proof enough.

"Maybe you can show me around town first," B added, looking to Kate.

Kate looked at B in disbelief. B still had her ears and everything out, still looked sexy as fuck, and Kate could still smell how strong B's arousal was. Yet B wanted to go into town first? Seriously?

B, who had been fighting her need for Kate with every passing second, felt herself giving in as she watched Kate's eyes darken to black. Letting out a low growl, B said, "If you can catch me, you can have me." She sprinted out of the house at full speed, not even bothering to shift. She wanted to be caught, and with the need to have Kate touching her so strong, B would only be giving a token resistance.

B didn't get very far before Kate took her to the ground, flipping them long enough so that Kate could cushion B's fall, only to roll on top of B and straddle her waist. "Gotcha," Kate said with a pleased and lusty grin as she slowly, sexily, took off her top. "Now, let's see just how sensitive you are, Kitten."

Swallowing hard, B let Kate manipulate her body however the blonde wanted––the only struggle B put up was the struggle to get out of her clothes––and soon, Kate and B were both fully naked, and B had already come once just from Kate playing with B's tail. Why was the thing so damn sensitive?

"Damn, Kitten. I need to figure out how to trigger this change thingy whenever I want," Kate breathed as she nipped B's neck, making her mate's claws dig into her skin as B growled, low in her throat. Almost as if her mate was challenging her.

All of a sudden, Kate got this sudden, strong urge to take B from behind. Kate let the need ride her, flipping B onto her stomach and covering B's smaller body with her own.

B's breath caught in her throat as she felt her body recognize and react to the position, and magic hummed through her. "Wait, Kate––" Anything the brunette would have said trailed off with a gasp as Kate's hand slid between the ground and B to capture a breast in her hand, Kate rocking her hips against B's ass.

"Yeah?" Kate murmured huskily, pushing her pelvis against B once more, her fingers playing with B's nipple. Her lips pressed against B's mating mark, and B shuddered with a hiss of need, claws digging into the dirt as she arched her back, silently begging Kate to take her. Kate didn't need another push to claim her mate; her free hand moved between their bodies to tease B's soaked slit until B was whimpering and squirming. Then, with an open mouthed kiss to B's mating mark, Kate entered her.

It was another few hours until they could get up, get dressed, and go into town like B planned. Even then, B smelled heavily of sex, their clothes were rumpled, and it took some serious combing and face washing in a nearby stream to get themselves anywhere close to presentable for public.

B had also returned to normal, although she still hummed with magic––something Kate could feel through the bond and had asked about, but B was as clueless as Kate was. The walk to town was pretty quiet, and even in town, few words, albeit a lot of touches, passed between them.

They got a lot of looks simply because of the couple's beauty, but nobody dared to approach, so neither B or Kate had a reason to get their backs up. They shopped for groceries, got some clothing from a local shop, and just walked around, keeping an eye out for Sly, who B insisted had to either arrive early that day or by tomorrow morning.

Then a small shop caught B's eye; Newton's Olympic Outfitters.

"C'mon, I want to check it out," B said, tugging Kate along. Kate rolled her eyes fondly and followed.

"It's a sporting goods store, Kitten. The only reason we would need to come in here is if you did some kind of sport or something physically demanding like rock climbing. Although, I guess our sex life can be considered something like that...at Olympic level, even." Kate got a huge, cheesy grin on her face at the thought of rigorous sex being a part of the Olympics. Damn, her mate would get first place every time. Although the only person B would be having sex with would be Kate, and no one would be allowed to watch...it would be a sport done in private, although it could still be done outside.

Kate was so wrapped in her thoughts that she didn't even immediately notice the anxiety buzz she got when B moved away from her, although not very far, as Kate could still feel her close by, maybe only an aisle or two away. But what did get her attention was the spike of irritation that came from B a few moments later.

Brought to attention, Kate realized that one of the human workers in the store was chatting with her mate, and B was not pleased. Kate wasn't either, and that was before she could scent the guy's arousal.

"Oh, you're related to the Cullens? Damn, no wonder you look so hot," the blond boy said in an attempt to be smooth and flirty, instead coming off as pathetic and neanderthal. In any other situation, Kate would have found his attempts amusing; instead, since he was trying his moves out on _her_ mate, Kate was pissed. Dropping the groceries, she stalked over, lips skimmed back from her teeth, and fixed the inhuman look into a scowl just before she came into view of the boy.

"Is this boy messing with you, babe?" Kate asked, not even bothering to hide her hostility as she draped an arm over her mate's shoulders. The boy looked between Kate and B with a stunned realization, and then his arousal grew, making B scrunch up her nose in disgust.

Fighting back the urge to attack the boy for creating fantasies involving her mate, B said, "Oh no. He comes across as too much of a dumbass to be of any real problem. At most, he's on the level of an annoying fly."

Kate looked at B in surprise at her statement, and the human actually took a step back at the dark emotions in B's words, but no one was more surprised than B herself. Since when was she someone who would be outright cruel to someone, no matter how annoying they got?

It had to be because of the new mating bond. It had to be. B didn't want to think that this was her true self coming through. "Let's just go, Kate," B said softly, still stunned by her own words.

Giving one last glare at the boy, Kate nodded and led B out of the store, stopping only to pick up the abandoned groceries.

"I think that's enough of the town for one day," Kate murmured in B's ear as she led the girl back towards the forest, in direction of the Cullens' house. B relaxed against her vampire in relief, happy to get away from all the humans and be in a place where she could mostly be herself, with her family.

They didn't make it very far into the forest when Kate decided to lighten the mood, and get in a little more sexy times. She pulled away from B, which got an adorable confused cock of the head from her mate, and gave B a predatory grin.

"Run," she purred, right before jumping at B. The shifter didn't even bother to move, so Kate found herself taking B to the ground for the second time that day. B actually had to stifle a giggle as she felt how much Kate enjoyed the whole chase and capture thing, and how Kate was actually a little disappointed that B didn't try to escape. "Well, now that I've got you right where I want you, maybe I should––" Kate started, her lips descending to take B's throat.

A sudden, furious roar split the air, and Kate's head jerked up just in time to catch a giant panther...and it was flying right at her.


	32. Chapter 32

Author's Note: Sorry for those who waited, but here's the next chapter. Once again, tell me what you think, what you like, etc.

* * *

Chapter 32

It had been quite a surprise for Kate to be in fuck mode only to find a panther lunging for her throat, Kate's priorities shifted immediately to protect her mate. Still, while the panther was aiming for Kate, it was B who reacted faster.

In the blink of an eye, she flipped to her feet, shifted to cat, and lunged, colliding with the panther––who had to be five times her size––in mid air. The panther yowled in protest as Kate roared furiously, desperate to protect her mate. She rushed into the fray, grabbing the panther to drag it off of her mate, while shocking it at the same time. The panther didn't go slack, however. Instead, it started struggling harder, not even crying out in pain as it was electrocuted again and again.

Just as Kate was about to up the strength of her shocks, she felt B cup the sides of her face, urgently forcing Kate to look at her.

"Let her go," B said. Seeing Kate' incredulous expression, B added in a soft voice, "Please. She was just trying to protect me."

Realizing who the giant panther was, Kate threw the cat away, giving them space in case the panther decided to attack again. It did, of course, and would have followed through had B not once again stepped in the line of fire.

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't attack my mate, you...you...ugh, I don't even know what to call you right now!" B exclaimed, clearly agitated as she glared the giant panther down. "Don't even start," she added threateningly to Kate, who had tried to move B behind her so her mate would be better protected.

The panther, who hadn't taken its furious golden eyes off of Kate, slowly disappeared. In its place was a tall girl who looked to be no older than twenty two. She had tanned skin, long black hair, and a toned body covered only in a sports bra and ripped jeans. Crossing her arms over an ample chest, she continued to glare at Kate, openly hostile.

"You mean to tell me that _this_ is your mate?" the girl spat.

Offended, Kate opened her mouth to retort, only to get out a muffled exclamation as B reached back to put her hand over Kate's mouth, never breaking eye contact with the other shifter. "Yeah; take your time to note the golden eyes, blonde hair, pale skin, and sexy body, cause it's the only time I'm going to let you stare." B's voice dropped to a low growl as she added, "And this will be the only time I'll forgive you for attacking her; if you ever so much as try again, I'm going to shred you to bits."

"You can try," Sly said with a snort. Then she focused on Kate once more. "And she told you to run, like she was about to hunt you down like you were prey. I had every right to go after someone I saw as a threat."

"You said I was sexy," was all Kate could manage to say, a huge grin on her face as her arms wound around her mate's waist. It was as if she had completely forgotten Sly and any possible threat existed.

Sly arched her eyebrows at the lovesick, distracted look on the vampire's face. "She's not big on brains, is she?"

"I can't say for sure; so far, all she seems to think about is sex," B replied dryly, leaning into her vampire's embrace.

"Hey!" Kate protested, pouting. "I have loads of brains."

"If that's true, it's all buried under your loads of fantasies," B retorted.

"Not true," Kate shot back.

"Approximately how many hours have you imagined me naked, stripping, or fucking you today? And include the time we've actually spent doing it."

"I dunno," Kate mumbled, sticking out her bottom lip in a pout. "Depends on when you consider the day having started."

"Did you even spend an entire hour thinking clean thoughts today?" When Kate didn't answer, B rolled her eyes. "That's what I thought. Anyways Sly, this is Kate. Sly, my mate Kate; aka the dangerous vampire you just tried to kill."

Sly shrugged, clearly unconcerned with her attempted murder, and shoved her hands in her pockets. "Whatever; and I still don't trust you, blondie. I don't even like you."

"The feeling's mutual," Kate retorted, pulling B tighter against her. "Now tell us what B needs to know and leave." Kate then let out a grunt as B elbowed her in the stomach.

"Not gonna happen. I'm staying here till I know Baby B is safe," Sly said as she sauntered closer, although she still kept a good amount of distance between her and Kate. It was clear Sly wasn't scared or even nervous, so B knew that there was a reason Sly hadn't come closer. She wondered what it was.

"She's always safe with me," Kate hissed.

"Unlikely," Sly quipped, smirking when Kate growled at her.

"Enough!" B all but groaned as she purposely stepped between them, and out of Kate's arms. Sly was never the touchy feely type––and honestly, neither was B until Kate came into the picture––so B held out her fist for a fist bump, which Sly gave her.

"Speaking of safety, did you all know you have a shit ton of puppies in your backyard?" Sly added casually as she continued walking along like she knew where they were going.

B frowned in confusion, but Kate let out a low, annoyed groan. "Just what we need; more pains in the asses." When B turned to Kate for answers, Kate told her, "Your...friend, has to be talking about the Quiletes. They're a bunch of wolf shifters who hate vampires but have a treaty with the Cullens and, indirectly, us."

"More shifters who hate vampires, what a surprise," Sly drawled in a sarcasm laced voice. "It's not like they have any reason to hate bloodsuckers after all of the shit leeches pull on a daily basis." Kate bristled at the comment, calming only when B slipped a hand into Kate's back pocket and cuddled close; something that didn't go unnoticed by Sly.

"So, how long are you going to be here for? And why couldn't you just tell me what I needed to know on the phone?" B asked, more curious than irritated now that Sly had actually shown up and hadn't attempted to attack Kate again.

"Figured it'd be better to tell everyone the situation at once, and also check in on you to make sure you aren't getting fucked over," Sly said. "Still, might as well tell you a bit now; the whole angry, possessive, no touchy the mate thing you've got going on happens when you're mated. You will continue to feel this way until you're assured that blondie there won't stray and start fucking other people."

Kate let out a furious growl. How dare this bitch think Kate wasn't loyal? "I'll never cheat on B. She's my mate, and I'd do anything––"

"Yeah, yeah," Sly interrupted, waving Kate off. "Save the spiel. The possessive instinctual shit is the same for any newly mated shifter anyways, whether the mate is loyal or not. Problem is, each mating bond is different, so the mate proving themselves differs too."

"Oh." Kate deflated, realizing she had gotten worked up for nothing. She actually felt embarrassed now, especially with B giving her an exasperated look. She quickly perked up, however, when B stood on her tiptoes to steal a quick kiss from her.

"So, B, I'm going to need the rundown on what I'm walking into here," Sly said, purposely interrupting their moment, then smirking when B was distracted. A steaming Kate glared at Sly over B's head, but the panther was unperturbed.

"Right. Well, there's two covens; the Cullens and the Denalis. The Cullens have a total of seven vampires, all animal drinkers. I don't really like one, but the others all seem like okay or good people––I'm still getting to know them. The other coven is the one I'm a part of, and there's me, Kate, Kate's two sisters, Carmen and Eleazar, and…" B's face clouded over, and Sly liked Kate just a little, itty, tiny, miniscule bit more when Kate wrapped an arm around B, kissed her temple, and focused on reassuring B with her presence. "There's a new vampire who just joined. He's the only one with red eyes, and he might be changing to an animal diet, but I just...I really, really don't like him."

"Noted," Sly said, her face impassive even though she took the red eyed vamp seriously. While B wasn't one to hate or be afraid for no reason, she did so heavily when vampires were involved––yet it was clear that it wasn't just her founded fear of vampires that was at work; her instincts were definitely involved too. Sly now had no intentions to leave B alone until the vampire was either killed or deemed completely safe. And if these other vampires tried to run Sly off, well, then Sly was taking B with her, whether blondie wanted her to or not.

Kate, sensing a heavy gaze on her, looked up to find Sly staring at them. There was a dark determination in those eyes, and while Kate wasn't sure if she and Sly would ever get along, she was sure that Sly would protect B with her life.

When Kate met Sly's eyes, Sly stopped walking, making B and Kate stop too. It took a few moments, but Sly finally turned her gaze to B, who had been completely focused on calming Kate down. "So, where exactly are we going?"

Sighing with relief, as Sly was never one to take criticism well and would have balked had B tried to correct their path before Sly had asked, B turned in the opposite direction that Sly had been leading them. "This way."

"Oh," Sly said as Kate stifled her laughter.

B only shook her head. It was a true miracle that Sly had managed to make it here at all.

* * *

"So, another cat shifter is coming?" a blond man asked, flashing a pleased smile that showed his perfect teeth. Beside him, his mate purred with excitement; this hunt had been a long time coming, and she was eager to finally end it.

"Yes, James. Whoever the second cat is, she should be coming any moment now," the man's informant answered excitedly, all but bouncing on the balls of his feet. He hadn't remembered the last time that he was going to have this much fun. "Sadly, your old friend is heavily guarded by two covens, and they don't exactly trust me yet. I don't even think they'd trust me even ten years down the line."

At that, James hissed. "I am not going to wait that long," he spat, furious at so much as the idea of waiting. "I want to sink my teeth into the girl by the end of the week."

"Patience, love," his mate murmured, rubbing his chest soothingly. James settled down somewhat, making his informant laugh.

"If you want to get your fangs in her and the other cat anytime soon, you're going to need to do something about it. Say, give them a reason to trust me...like protecting their coven from a threat or two," his informant suggested with a sly, cruel grin. "Maybe it will also help me get into the pants of the woman I'm charming, as well. Everybody wins!"

James frowned, mulling over the idea. "That bastard charged me quite a bit for the last demon, and look at how well that turned out...Fine. I'll have him summon a creature or two to help you gain their trust, Laurent; but it better be good."

"Of course! It'll look good, feel good, even taste good. It will be the show of the century!" the french vampire exclaimed, still grinning widely. "Perhaps you will tell me what I might have to fight off?"

"Isn't it obvious? The best things for this situation is something that can't be banished like the last demon; something not banished to hell, but born in it. Something that will even trim some of their numbers down so I can claim my hunts much more easily," James said with a small, evil smirk.

His mate laughed, her smile just as evil. "Hellhounds," she trilled, clapping with glee.

"Oh, this is going to be exciting," Laurent said, hugging himself at the thought. "And when will I be seeing these magnificent beasts?"

"In a few days; I will have to hunt down that damned sorcerer again," James said, his eyes turning black with anger. "In the meantime, make yourself useful and continue earning their trust."

"Of course. James, Victoria," Laurent said with a bow and a nod. Then he was gone.

"Soon," Victoria whispered with longing. "Soon." In that moment, all she could see was that fearful, small girl with those terrified eyes, covered in her own blood. All she could think was the look on the girl's face when Victoria and James tore her limb from limb.


	33. Chapter 33

_Author's Note: As I was writing this, I realized how I was kinda prolonging the process. Why? Because this is my first story, it's going to be coming to an end rather soon, and I don't want that. It doesn't help that this is a Kate/Bella story, and I really love them. I'm seriously going to miss this story when it's over. So, I'm going to ask my readers this; how do you feel about another Kate/Bella story? It'll be different from this one, and I can either start it after I finish Keeping the Stray or while I'm still working on it. It'll help mend my broken heart when I realized this story is almost over. Once again, it's up to you all, as you're the reason I wrote this much in the first place. Anyways, I hope you enjoy._

* * *

Chapter 33

The second Sly was in sight of the house, B could tell something was going on. Sly stopped walking, her eyes widened, and her jaw dropped. B followed Sly's stare, and found her friend's gaze riveted on a certain blonde vampire waiting for them...Tanya.

"Holy fuck," Sly breathed, gazing at the blonde beauty with undisguised need. "Who would've guessed I'd be mated to a bloodsucker too?"

"Seriously?" B and Kate said as one––B stunned, Kate a little frustrated. Did this mean she was stuck with this annoying cat for the rest of eternity?

"But how can you tell? We don't recognize our mate's right away," B whispered.

"Besides the fact that she's the hottest fucking creature to ever walk this earth?" Sly shot back. "I can sense her reaction to me." A large smirk slid over her face. "Guess that's one of the perks of having a vamp for a mate, huh?"

"You're actually mated to my sister?" Kate muttered in disbelief.

"Yup." Then she turned her smirk on B, Sly's eyes softening as she looked at the smaller cat. "Guess that means we're real sisters now, huh?"

"Yeah," B agreed, feeling herself smile at the thought. A part of her couldn't believe it; every person she cared about that was still alive, all in one place, possibly forever. Could her life get any better.

"Anything I need to know about her?" Sly whispered as quietly as possible, to the point where Kate could barely hear.

"She's a succubus and leader of Kate's coven, her name is Tanya. I don't...I don't know what else you need to know, or what I should tell you," B said, a little uncertainly.

"That's good enough. Now, I'd better get on with the seduction," Sly said with obvious glee. The panther reached down to take off her shirt, only to pause when she realized she wasn't wearing one. "Ah, crap. Well, time for plan B," Sly said to herself, meeting the gaze of the her still-stunned mate before slowly, purposely, taking off her jeans. Then, in only a sports bra and boy shorts, she rushed across the clearing and jumped on her mate.

"Talk about dramatic gestures," Kate grumbled with annoyance as the two girls kissed heatedly.

"That's Sly," B agreed fondly, only to frown herself. "Damn it, she's supposed to be helping me figure out my problems, not just sexing up one of my sisters."

Kate snorted at that, but also felt that warm feeling in her gut when B referred to Tanya as one of her sisters as well. "Didn't she already help with that?"

B huffed and grabbed Kate's hand to drag them towards the house. "Not really; she explained it, but the problem is still very much there."

And will be until I find out how to prove I'm staying, Kate realized, nearly growling at the thought. How was Kate supposed to do that? Was she supposed to show B in some big, dramatic, romantic gesture? But Kate sucked at romance! She was the kind of girl who used her hands, tongue, and whole body, really, to show her emotions. She wasn't good with words––unless they had some kind of sexual meaning, then she was great. This was going to take some time, which really sucked, since knowing some part of B, whether it be the subconscious or some primal part of her, actually thought Kate would stray. But no; hell no. Kate couldn't even look at another person now with any kind of romantic or sexual interest.

So how was she going to show B this?

"Get a room!" B shouted at the two as she pushed past Tanya and Sly, into the house where all the other vampires were waiting.

"Gladly," Sly said with a saucy smirk directed at Tanya. "Your room or the woods?"

"Woods gives us privacy," Tanya murmured, moving her lips to Sly's neck.

"Woods it is," Sly agreed, releasing Tanya so Sly could land on her feet. She then scooped the vampire up and took off into the trees.

"Well, there goes our esteemed leader," Irina said, rolling her eyes as she leaned against the couch, Laurent nowhere in sight.

"Wait a second, how come Tanya doesn't have to chase her mate! That's so not fair!" Kate complained with a pout.

B turned to look at her with a sigh. "It's because Sly's dominant." Then she took Kate's hand and put it against B's chest, over her heart. Giving Kate a teasing smile, B added, "And while I keep you on your toes, I believe it's quite clear that I'm very, very submissive."

Kate swallowed, feeling her arousal skyrocket once more. "The other half of the forest isn't being used right now."

"But it will be used real soon, won't it?" B replied with a purr.

Carmen frowned at that. She really didn't want to hear either B and Kate or Tanya and the girl who had to be Sly being...intimate...while hunting. "Just be quick about it," she said to them. "We really don't want to run into anything that we won't be able to forget."

"You got it, Carmen," Kate agreed, before picking up B and taking off.

"Great. Now two of the oldest vampires we're allied with are acting like a bunch of hormonal teenagers," Rosalie said with a sigh.

"Like that's new for Kate," Emmett cracked, laughing at his own joke.

Out in the forest, B and Kate were true to their word and had a quick sex session...if three hours could be considered quick. And once again, B and Kate were distracted on the way back by the strange buzzing that had taken up residence in B's body, this time much, much stronger than before.

Sly and Tanya, on the other hand, weren't as quick. They came back about two days later, and not only had B and Kate managed to explain B's behavior, but how Kate was supposed to fix it––although she still had no idea how. Emmett had a good laugh at that, making a joke about how much work women were, which earned him a good slap to the back of the head from his wife.

In the two days that it took for Tanya and Sly to come back, Laurent did as well. B noticed with a scared prickling sensation that his eyes weren't changing color or getting any duller, but that wasn't the only thing that kept B at a distance. Laurent certainly didn't help, as he kept on trying to get close, chat with her, and even hug her quite a few times.

"Yo, sorry about the wait," Sly said with a huge, satisfied grin as she sauntered into the house. "I'm Sly, and you all must be the possibly nice evil bloodsuckers I heard so much about from B." She gave them all a lazy salute, smirking when Tanya bumped against her in a playful warning.

Sly tried not to be obvious about it, but her eyes lingered on Laurent, the one B had warned her about. She really didn't like the feel of the bastard, and it wasn't just his eyes that set off warnings. In fact, Sly had felt a heavy, cold feeling coming from his direction before even looking at him for the first time. It was hard work not to bare her teeth at him.

"You haven't marked each other," B noted in surprise as she examined her the new couple. It was quite obvious that while both girls were beyond satisfied, Tanya looked a little disgruntled as well.

"Sly wouldn't let me," Tanya explained.

Sly shrugged. "Figured we wouldn't want two crazed shifters in the house. Until Tanya and I can go off alone for a few months or you and blondie over there fix that problem you have, we have to wait." Then Sly caught an interesting scent, and zeroed in on the other shifter. "Damn, you guys must be having some serious fuck sessions. Your magic's been activated, and it's running loose."

B cocked her head to the side in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"You probably have some weird buzzing feeling going on right now, right?" Sly said, making B nod. "That's your magic. It's preparing your body for pregnancy."

At Sly's words, every vampire's eyes were suddenly riveted on the other couple. B paled considerably, and Kate's eyes widened to the size of saucers.

"Are you telling me I'm pregnant?" B squeaked in disbelief as Kate got a huge, silly grin on her face. She had never thought this could have been possible.

"No, not yet, but you're going to be if you fuck much more," Sly replied bluntly, scratching the back of her head. "I don't know if it's the succubus thing or what, but this is happening pretty damn quickly. It usually takes a few years before our magics activate like that, regardless of species and bloodlines."

"Which means…" B started, still in shock.

"Holy hell, I'm potent!" Kate hooted with excitement, picking up her mate and spinning her around. "We're gonna have a kid someday!"

B started getting lightheaded. She was excited and amazed, but there was also a problem; with everything going on, this was the worst possible time to have a baby.

Almost every vampire there congratulated them on the possibility, save for four. Edward was busy sulking at the thought of actual conception happening between two females, as that would go against everything he had been taught.

Tanya felt a mix of excitement and nerves. It was then that she realized that she could get pregnant with Sly, although most likely after they had marked each other, but like B, she realized now really wasn't a good time. Not just for Tanya, but for B as well. And it wouldn't be a good time, not until Tanya knew they were all safe.

Irina also felt multiple emotions. She was of course happy for Kate and B, and even Tanya and Sly, but at the same time, she suddenly felt incredibly alone. While she had been in denial for quite some time, it was quite clear now, looking at her sisters and then herself, that Laurent wasn't her mate. He seemed like a nice, although eccentric guy, but he never would be what Irina so badly craved; what she so badly needed. She doubted she would get as lucky as her sisters and end up having a child, but would she ever even have a mate? Or had she done something so horrible that some greater power had decided she was doomed to forever walk the earth alone?

It was an incredibly painful thought, one painful enough to bring tears to her eyes. Outside of Laurent, the only other single vampire was Edward, and she hated the thought of being on the same level as that horrible excuse for a vampire.

Edward snarled at that, and Irina looked up to see the boy glaring at him. She caught his gaze, not backing down.

I'm right, and you know it. Maybe some day, after you reeducate yourself and reevaluate your so-called beliefs, you might become someone. Now, however, you're nothing but a whiny, spoiled brat who always wants to get his way, and will do something as perverted and intrusive as peeping into someone's thoughts to make sure you do.

Irina's thoughts must have hit something in the boy, as he let out an angry snarl and stormed out of the room. Irina was still so focused on the mindreader that she didn't even notice the way Laurent's eyes drank her in as he pulled her against his body.

Soon, he thought excitedly, cruelly, to himself. Soon, I will have everything I desire, and James will have his prize.

Everybody's attention was so split between the two newest couples and Edward's rude departure, that nobody noticed the evil light to Laurent's eyes. But even if they had, it wouldn't have prepared them for what happened next.

* * *

 _Author's Note #2: Please don't hate me for pairing Sly with Tanya instead of Irina! I needed to. Besides, I have plans for Irina, big plans...and good ones too, don't worry. So, once again, don't hunt me down and kill me for this. I promise you, Laurent will die and Irina will be happy, it'll just take a little longer than some of you hoped._


	34. Chapter 34

_Author's Note: Here's the next chapter; I don't know how happy you guys will be for me, but I'm kinda getting my old mojo back, so my stories might start getting updated faster again. Also, I realized that, depending on how things go in this story, it might end up a bit longer or a little shorter than what I thought. Just figured I'd let everyone know._

* * *

Chapter 34

"Relax, B. I'm telling you, you'll get over the whole need-to-touch-thing once blondie proves herself," Sly assured B for the hundredth time, rolling her eyes.

"It better, because it's pissing me off that I can't even get dressed just a floor above her without freaking myself out," B muttered through gritted teeth, making Sly laugh. "Now help me with this thing, will you?"

"Oh, no. I do not want blondie getting all possessive on me when she smells my scent on you. You need to get that dress on yourself," Sly said, still laughing.

That's right, it was true; B was wearing a dress. After Alice dragged both Kate and B on a shopping trip where Alice had forced her to buy a dress without even letting B trying it on so Kate could see, Alice had somehow convinced everyone to go out to some fancy event party. That meant dresses and tuxes for all, much to B's annoyance. It didn't help her any to find out that Sly got to wear some sexy vest thing instead of being forced into a dress herself. If only she had realized Alice was up to something sooner...then she'd still have ended up in this situation. Why was B even trying to convince herself otherwise?

"Speaking of blondes, about Tanya––" B started, guilt clear in her tone.

"Stop right there, Baby B," Sly said with a grin that managed to look both kind but also teasing. "There's no reason to guilt yourself about this. I would have made Tanya wait even if we had met in the best possible situation."

"What, really?" B asked, surprised.

"Yup. She's seriously sexy when she gets all frustrated," Sly said, clearly savoring a memory. Then she winked at B and added, "Plus, you know how us cats love to play with our prey, whether that be our women or our food, it makes no difference."

B burst out into laughter. "You are so lucky that these walls are soundproofed."

"Why do you think I'm telling you this in here?" Sly said, letting out a laugh as well. Noticing that B was still struggling with her dress, Sly rolled her eyes. "Oh, for fucks' sake, get over here," she said. As she zipped up the dress, Sly couldn't help but laugh again. "I can see now why Alice insisted Kate dress and wait downstairs; if she had seen you in this any earlier, she would've torn it right off. As it is, she's gonna need to be held back when she catches a glimpse of you."

"Really?" B asked in a soft voice as she turned to look at her friend, a little shy excitement in her eyes. Her entire body buzzed, almost screamed for her to go downstairs and into her mate's arms.

"Definitely," Sly swore as she fixed B's hair. "In fact, let me prove it to you." She opened the door, and with a huge sweep of her arms and a bow, she said, "After you."

Downstairs, Kate could hear some muffled sounds that sounded like laughter, something that eased the anxiety in her chest at being away from her mate. However, the sight in front of her definitely helped as well; she all but fell to the ground laughing her ass off.

"Damn, is somebody whipped. What's next, Jasper? Are you going to start letting Alice dress you in her clothes, too?" Kate taunted when she regained her composure, poking fun at the boy's tux, which clearly matched Alice's dress.

Alice rolled her eyes, but Jasper smirked and said, "Like you're one to talk. B's been leading you around by the nose since the moment you two met." Sure, Jasper hadn't been around the moment they had met, but he didn't have to be an empath to know what their relationship had been from the start.

"Nuh uh! I just let her think she does," Kate protested immediately.

"Oh, really now?" B's voice came from right behind her, and Kate jumped guiltily. Kate quickly glared daggers at Alice and Jasper, who had to have seen B sneaking up on her. Alice only laughed, grabbing Jasper's hand.

"Mess up her outfit and I'll make you regret it," Alice promised sweetly before the two ran away to wait outside.

Outfit? Oh yeah, B getting dressed was the whole reason Kate had to suffer being away from her. Turning around, Kate felt as if she had been struck by lightning. Venom pooled in her mouth, venom she had to swallow, and Kate could do nothing but stare dumbly.

B was in a dark red dress and matching heels, the color bringing out red highlights that Kate's enhanced vampiric sight had noticed in the sun. B's naturally messy hair had also been straightened. B even wore makeup, which made her look a few years older, closer to Kate's changed age of twenty five then B's eighteen. To say B was a sight to behold would have been the understatement of the century. All Kate could do was stare, open-mouthed, as B sauntered towards her.

"Babe?" B murmured, eyes sparkling as she placed her hands on Kate's cheeks.

Kate closed her mouth with a soft click, only to open her mouth again to try and form words. Finally, after at least a minute spent trying, Kate whispered in a hoarse voice, "Damn am I the luckiest woman on earth."

"I'd beg to differ," Sly said, just to mess with Kate as she came down the steps. "In fact, I'd have to say the luckiest woman on Earth is Tanya." As she spoke, her eyes never stopped searching for the woman in question, who had appeared when she heard Sly coming down.

"Oh, really now?" Tanya asked dryly as she crossed her arms over her chest. She tried to look unconcerned with Sly's entrance, but her gaze couldn't help but rake over Sly's form, drinking in her new appearance.

"Totally. I mean, look at who you ended up with," Sly said cockily, waving her hand at her own body as she stared blatantly and lustily at Tanya's.

Kate didn't even notice a single word that Sly or her sister spoke, still completely absorbed in B. Her hands moved naturally to B's hips, and while a part of her was roaring at Kate to take B, a larger part was stuck staring at B in awe, wondering how she could have gotten so lucky as to end up with such a woman, one who was beautiful inside and out and who had actually fallen in love with Kate.

"You look amazing yourself," B whispered, reaching up to kiss Kate softly.

"Isabella…" Kate started, trying to articulate how emotionally powerful Kate's revelation was, only to be interrupted.

"Come on, lovebird pairs one and two, let's get a move on!" Irina shouted from the front door, jolting not just B and Kate out of their moment, but Sly and Tanya out of their little makeout session as well.

"Damn cockblock," Sly complained. "You're lucky I don't actually have a dick, or me and Tanya would have a real problem."

"And we wouldn't want that, now would we?" Tanya murmured with a low laugh, lacing her fingers through Sly's as she pulled Sly out the door. B could still hear Sly complaining about how she'd rather stay home and peel the dress off of Tanya even after the door had closed, and she could tell that Kate was getting some ideas of her own.

"Don't," B said, holding up her hand to stop Kate's advances. "Seriously, if any part of my look is messed up, Alice will throw a fit."

"Fine. But just wait until the party's over…" Kate promised as she tightened her grip around B's waist. B rolled her eyes as she was led out the door, but her flush and arousal were clear giveaways of her true mood.

Earlier that day, Irina had taken her coven aside, B and Sly included although Laurent was once again thankfully missing, and admitted that she knew Laurent wasn't her mate. This was quite a relief to all, but that relief was short lived, as Irina was still going to the party with Laurent. It didn't help that Irina was looking particularly good, and Laurent couldn't keep her eyes and hands off of her.

Due to both Sly and B being incredibly uneasy around the french vampire, whose eyes were still a bright red, Tanya decided it was best that she, Kate, and their mates took one car while Irina, Laurent, Carmen, and Eleazar took another. What the Cullens figured out, Tanya wasn't too concerned about.

The ride itself was mostly quiet, especially since neither couple wanted to call the other one out for getting handsy with their mates, and it only felt like minutes that four cars pulled up to a large building.

"I want to go home," B mumbled the second she got out of the car and caught sight of all the people.

Kate, realizing that B hadn't exactly been well socialized during the shifter's time on the streets, especially so with crowds, draped a protective arm over her mate's shoulders. "It's okay, Kitten. Just stay with me."

"Like I was planning anything else," B said with a roll of her eyes before cuddling a little closer.

Alice came bouncing over, an excited look on her face. "Isn't this just amazing? We're gonna have so much fun!"

"Yay," Sly said, not sounding any happier than B. Tanya squeezed the panther's hand reassuringly, but it did little to elevate Sly's mood. It seemed both cats were having second thoughts as they realized just how big and fancy this event was going to be.

"Come on, let's go inside," Alice said, apparently oblivious to the dower mood as she dragged Jasper towards the building. Jasper only managed to shoot the two couples an apologetic look before he was gone. The rest of the Cullens all followed her, all incredibly relaxed––unlike the Denalis.

"Well, I suggest we follow," Laurent spoke up from where he was next to Irina, a huge grin on his face as well that seemed more malicious to the shifters. "It's a little strange for us to just stand here all by ourselves after all."

The second Laurent spoke, B instinctively moved closer to Kate at the same moment Sly tugged Tanya towards her. As they did so, the three sisters shared a worried look, as the two shifters' reactions to Laurent only seemed to be getting worse. As Laurent excitedly led Irina towards the building, Tanya purposely looked towards Eleazar and Carmen.

Eleazar nodded at his coven leader, silently promising to keep a close eye on the couple, Carmen looking just as determined to keep everyone safe as her mate. They quickly followed after Laurent, leaving Sly, B, Kate, and Tanya to approach the party at a much slower pace.

"We can leave whenever you want, I promise," Kate murmured in her mate's ear as the got closer to the door.

"Yeah. Just...don't let me hurt anybody," B whispered back, right before they went inside.

"C'mon, let's get this shit over with," Sly grumbled. "But if anybody grabs your ass, bitches will be going down."

"Oh, how nice of you to defend my honor," Tanya said with a roll of her eyes. But she couldn't hide her smile as she was led inside by her mate.

The first thing that nearly overwhelmed them was the noise. This was quickly followed by the sheer volume of hot, sweaty bodies in every direction. Then came the stench of cooked food, which only smelled good to the two shifters. Not to mention, for such a dressy event, there was also quite a bit of grinding.

"I'm going to kill Alice," Kate muttered, noticing just how overwhelmed her mate had become the second they had stepped inside. "That little pixie had to have seen this happen."

"Actually, I didn't. I'll have you know, tonight is a complete blank," Alice quipped, appearing behind them. Her face took on a confused expression as she added, "Although tomorrow is completely visible...I wonder why?"

"You didn't think to tell us that earlier?" Tanya demanded sharply.

Alice just shrugged. "Well, whatever I tried to see us doing didn't make a difference. No matter what, my visions came up blank, and I can see everybody is just fine tomorrow, so…"

"I want to go home," B mumbled as she vainly tried to cover her ears.

"You're not the only one," Sly added with a growl.

They obviously did go home, although it had to be a good three hours later at least. Everybody seemed to have a had at the very least an okay time, save for two clearly miserable cats and two upset mates. Not only had the entire event stressed the two shifters out to the max, but both reacted badly to anyone who tried to flirt with their vampires. Kate and Tanya didn't react much better to those who tried to get with their mates, and the whole thing was basically a mess. Sly and B were in fact so tired from the ordeal they had gone through that they simply collapsed into the car seats and seemed ready to fall asleep in a heartbeat.

Maybe that was why it was only when they reached the house that they felt the foreboding, uneasy feeling. And maybe their exhaustion was why they only realized what it meant when they were out of the car and heading towards the house.

"What is it?" Esme asked with concern as every vampire turned to the two shifters, who had stiffened suddenly.

"Danger!" B and Sly snarled as one––just as the first threatening growl could be heard from the forest. Nobody could react as thirteen pairs of glowing red eyes appeared in the shadows. Not until the first of the hulking monsters lunged...right at Irina.


	35. Chapter 35

_Author's Note: Hey guys, sorry for taking so long to update this. I've just been stuck, trying to figure out which way I'm going on this, and so on. But hey, I finally got it out, right? Please tell me what you think of it too. Thanks._

* * *

Chapter 35

Immediately, B and Sly jumped up to intercept, but the rest of the hellhounds burst from the forest to attack and everyone got lost in the battle. Sharp teeth nearly clamped onto B's arm, but then Kate was dragging the car sized creature away. Then B heard Kate hiss in pain, and she let out a furious yowl, power exploding from her as she launched herself at the creature who dared harm her mate.

Sly wasn't doing much better. She was trying to fight her own monster off, but she was incredibly worried about Tanya, and kept getting distracted. It wasn't making it any easier that despite having an extra two people to fight, they were being overwhelmed. Esme and Carlisle were struggling with a single one on their own, Irina was stuck in a corner with Laurent and a particularly large hellhound only a few feet in front of her, and no one save for Bella and Sly seemed to have any idea how to handle fighting a creature that wasn't another vampire.

Then more howls echoed through the air, and Sly was sure everything was lost. Laurent started screaming in agony, and while Sly wouldn't exactly mourn his death, she was sure that his death wouldn't be the last.

Suddenly, there was a hulking figure at her side, but it wasn't a hellhound. It was a wolf, a shifter. And it wasn't alone.

Just like that, the tides were turned. One of the wolves pulled the hellhound off of Laurent and other wolves joined the vampires to fight off the others. Before long, the hounds were running, with quite a few wolves and vampires chasing after them. The large hellhound Laurent had been fighting was particularly stubborn, roaring with fury and constantly smacking or throwing anyone who came close. But soon it, too, turned tail and ran.

"This isn't good," B muttered as she stepped up next to Sly, her gaze fixed on the dead bodies––all two of them. Only two, out of thirteen, had actually fallen to a total of thirteen vampires, two cat shifters, and eleven wolves.

"You're telling me." If they came back… Sly was distracted by her morbid thoughts when she realized just what B looked like. "Damn, what the hell happened to you?"

"Huh? Oh." B glanced down at her body, suddenly aware of its changes. Not only were her fangs and claws out and her eyes a golden color and slit, but her tail was out as well, with two cat ears protruding from each side of her head in place of her human ears. She had whiskers as well, and there was a soft brown fur covering the backs of her hands and feet, as well as up her arms and legs, the fur disappearing into her clothes. "I have no idea, I just...Kate was in danger and I lost control."

"And damn, do you look sexy like this," Kate murmured as she came up behind her mate, wrapping her arms around the cat. "I wanna take you so bad."

"You're not the only one," B mumbled, feeling the near overwhelming urge to take her mate, touch her, taste her, confirm that she safe and uninjured. Realizing that she wasn't changing back, she looked at Sly to ask if she knew what her transformation was about, only to find that Sly had made her way to Tanya's side and was looking her over anxiously.

Then a particularly agonized scream split the air, and everyone turned to Laurent.

The vampire looked like crap. He was covered in wounds, was missing an arm, and his eyes were pitch black. His wounds oozed a strange black substance, and they weren't healing, not even at a slow rate.

"Damn, did you get mauled," Sly said as he looked the vampire over without pulling out of Tanya's embrace, actually quite pleased with how bad he looked. Especially so since no one else was hurt too badly.

"What do we do? He's not healing," Irina said, anxiously pressing down on two pieces of flesh, trying to fuse them together.

"I dunno," Sly said, which wasn't exactly true. She didn't know how to help, but she did know where to look to find out. Instead of saying that, she turned to look at the wolves. "What about you, pups? You know anything about hellhounds?"

"They don't," Edward answered before the wolves could do so much as whine. "All they know about is vampires."

The largest of the wolves, a black one, ran into the forest, coming out as a young man. "That isn't true, leech. Our legends reference quite a bit, including demons. Those things, however…"

"Either way, thank you so much for helping us," Carlisle said, stepping up towards the man. "What made you come over here?"

"There was just something not right, something evil. We couldn't leave it to attack innocent humans; that's it," the man said tensely.

Just then, the rest of the wolves along with Emmett, Jasper, and Carmen and Eleazar, burst back into the clearing.

"They're gone. They went right through this giant black shadow and disappeared," Jasper reported as he ran back to Alice's side.

"But the biggest one, damn, it did not want to leave," Emmett said with a whistle. "One of the other dogs actually had to push it through."

"This is all very strange," Tanya murmured, unconsciously leaning back into Sly. "But we have something more important to worry about. Laurent might be dying." She glanced over at Irina, seeming more worried for her sister's emotional health than Laurent himself.

B was also a little confused. While she hadn't come across any hellhounds before, she knew the basics of them. She also knew that hellhounds usually just obeyed their master and that was that. What reason would one have to get overly vicious and attack so ferociously? It had to be that it was just either really angry, or it had a much higher bloodlust than the others. Sucks for Laurent, B supposed.

"We could go through all of the old books again, look for anything we missed," Carlisle said as he picked the french vampire up off of the ground. "But even then…"

"Wait," Laurent managed to gasp. "I...I know someone. Someone who can help. If you could just take me to him…"

"Of course," Carlisle was quick to take up the task before anyone could even wonder if they wanted to. "Just tell me where to go, and I'll bring you there. The rest of you, get back in the house and be on guard. And remember, only hunt in groups, just in case." Just like that, he was gone, with Irina calling after them, begging Carlisle to save Laurent.

Tanya opened her mouth, seemingly a little put out with how Carlisle tried to order everyone around without even realizing it, but dropped it with a sigh. "He is partially right; we should get inside and stay together. Your wolves too, of course, as I believe you all will need to hear what is said to plan for future attacks." Only when the alpha wolf nodded did Tanya turn to B and Kate, giving them a meaningful look. "And since I want all of us to stay together, this means I want us all in the same room. No exceptions."

"What?" both Kate and B exclaimed in disbelief at the exact same moment.

"You can't be serious," Kate added. "I need to sex up my girl here."

"And I…" B started, sending a tortured look Sly's way since she figured only Sly could understand the soul deep need she had to reclaim and check up on Kate.

"Sorry, I ain't helping you this time," Sly said, tightening her grip on Tanya. "As you can see, this lovely vampire is mine, and since she's a coven leader, she's gotta be all business right now. And as long as I can't fuck her, you can't fuck each other either."

"Fucking cockblocks, the both of you," Kate muttered petulantly as she stomped inside, dragging B after her.

"Not just them, this entire situation's one giant cockblock. Like the final cockblocking boss," Emmett added as he followed the two girls in with Rose and the other Cullens following close behind.

Sly almost reached out and grabbed B's wrist, but thought better of it. Instead, she caught B's eye and murmured, "Lots of skin contact and stay close. It'll help."

B nodded her thanks, and once inside, Kate started to lead B to the couch in the living room. However, B redirected them, sitting Kate in one of the chairs. She then sat sideways on Kate's lap, resting her head on Kate's shoulder and slipping her hand up Kate's shirt to rest on the vampire's cool stomach. She let out a sigh of relief, as the contact did ease the strain quite a bit.

Kate also felt some relief, but also felt quite a bit of sexual tension as well. After all, this was almost like B was taking the initiative, and since Kate was Kate...well, she desired B even more than before. Still, she tried to calm her raging libido and instead wrapped an arm around B, her hand resting under B's shirt, right on the cat's hip, fingers just under the waistband of the shifter's pants. Touching and being touched really did help with the stress of the situation, even though it certainly didn't help with Kate's horniness. Neither did the kisses that Kate felt she needed to give B's head, neck, and lips, however short those kisses were.

The other vampires settled in the room as well. Each couple had their other half close and were also touching in some way, but not in the desperate way that B and Kate were feeling. Sly and Tanya were in a similar situation, but just like with the vampire couples, while the need to confirm the other's safety was intense, it wasn't as bad as what Kate and B felt. B half hoped that something similar would happen when Sly and Tanya had exchanged marks, just so they could suffer the way Kate and B were. It was only a few moments after that that eleven Native American kids, some looking way too young to have been fighting in the first place, trickled in as well. However, they kept close to the door, all with uncomfortable or even outright disgusted looks on their faces.

"Love," Tanya spoke, turning towards Sly. Just like that, everyone was completely focused on what was happening. "I believe you, and possibly B, are the only ones who know anything about hellhounds. Perhaps you could help us out here?"

Sly let out a loud sigh, leaning back in her seat as she pushed a hand through her hair. "Alright, alright. I'll tell you what I know. But you fuckers better listen up, because I'm not repeating myself." Sly took a deep breath, and then she started to tell them everything she knew about hellhounds...and the only reason she could think of as to why they had attacked.

* * *

Once Laurent and Carlisle had arrived at James's house, it took quite a while to convince Carlisle that Laurent had to be left alone to heal, and even longer to actually get Laurent to the point where he could actually begin to do so. However, now that Laurent was able to stand without pain––although he was still missing an arm––he was confronting the very man who sent the hellhounds. And Laurent was furious.

"What the hell happened out there? I was supposed to fight those beasts off and earn the trust of the covens, not fight for my life!" Laurent hissed as he glared at the blond male. "That behemoth of a mutt was trying to shred me limb from limb!"

"I know," James said, making a face.

"You know? You know? So is it that you want me dead? You want to lose this hunt without ever getting a chance to take it up? What reason would you have to try and kill me when I have been nothing but loyal and helpful to you?"

"I do not want you dead," James growled, getting agitated at the other man's tone.

"Then what other reason would you have to––"

"Did you not hear him?" James's redheaded mate demanded furiously as she took a step towards Laurent. "My mate says he did not wish you dead, and he speaks the truth. I suggest you listen to him, or I will––"

"Victoria, my love," James said, wrapping an arm around the redhead in a soothing manner. "You know that I love it when you get upset on my behalf. However, anger will not help in this particular situation."

"Really? Because I believe anger will be very helpful. After all, I did lose my arm! That beast must have eaten it," Laurent said, his anger only rising as James's calmed.

"I did not plan on the hellhound hurting you to that degree," James said, once again focusing on Laurent instead of his purring mate. "In fact, I had planned on using the hellhounds to decrease the vampire's numbers."

"Oh, really now," Laurent said, putting on a false calm to try and hide his darker emotions. "Then might you tell me why there was a change of plans?"

At that, James got angry. Very, very angry. While he contained it well, it only made him look all the more ominous and frightening. "Well, it seems the summoner I got the hellhounds from gave me a particularly powerful and...volatile one. And it seems that because of this, I have lost control."

Laurent's eyes widened with horror as realization set in. "Does this mean…?"

"Yes, it does. It means that there's an unchained and uncontrolled hellhound on the loose. And it seems that it is still in the Forks area," James replied grimly.

This was incredibly bad; the last hellhound that had broken free so many years ago was killed by a powerful summoner only after taking the lives of several humans and vampires. What would this hellhound do, with the closest summoner already in a different state?

It seemed that many people were going to die. The only question was, would James lose his prey as well?


	36. Chapter 36

_Author's Note: Hey guys, thanks for the long wait. As you all know, I'm kinda back, but I'm not able to write as much right now, so I'm really sorry about that. Thanks for sticking with me, and please enjoy._

* * *

Chapter 36

"Right. Hellhounds are beings born in the underworld, or hell, or whatever the fuck you want to call it," Sly said, pulling Tanya onto her lap as she relaxed into her seat. "And the only way to get bring them into this world is through summoning them, and binding them to someone's will. And the longer these hellhounds live, the stronger and smarter they get. Even worse, they also develop talents of their own."

Everyone seemed to nod or grimace in understanding. Pleased that they were all listening so carefully, Sly continued.

"The stronger and older the hellhound, the harder they are to summon. But when summoned and bound correctly, they follow their owner's will to a tee. Not once do they do a single thing that their owner doesn't want them to. However, the stronger ones can fight the bond, so if their summoner isn't strong enough, they have a better chance of escaping. The need to fight should only happen if something the owner orders is something the hellhound strongly doesn't want to do. Usually this happens when an order is to, say, not kill something, and the hellhound really wants to kill."

"Just great," Irina murmured, remembering the hate in that one hellhound's eyes as it was forced to retreat. "So the hellhounds weren't just some random attack."

"Yeah," Sly said with a laugh. "Hellhounds are just great big bundles of fun." Becoming serious again, Sly added, "They usually hunt in packs; but, as we know from today, they're pretty formidable on their own. And they never give up until their order is completed or they're dead."

"Which means if someone wants us dead, they'll come back," Kate concluded, hugging her half shifted mate closer with worry.

B, while deep in thought, reached behind her to stroke Kate's face reassuringly with her hand. She was a little conflicted, as so many hellhounds was a definite danger to her family, to the only people she dared to love since her family was so brutally slaughtered, but at the same time...whatever had first started coming after them was so much worse. B actually preferred the hellhounds to whatever the original thing was.

"So what do we do? How do we kill these bastards?" Sam demanded, a vein in his forehead pulsing as he fought to control his fury, and therefore his shift, at the thought of such dangerous creatures running around, attacking not just the Cullens and Denalis, but innocents as well.

"The best thing to do is find the summoner and kill him," Sly answered immediately, easily. The thought of murder had always been easy to her; after all, since she had to fight so hard to survive. "All those still under his control would immediately be sent back to hell. Also, we wouldn't have to worry about the bastard summoning anything else to come kill us either."

"How do we do that?" Esme asked, brow creased with concern. Yet somehow, the woman was still calm, probably since Carlisle wasn't here to be the calm one, since he was still with Laurent. It was kinda weirding B out. A person being calm in such a situation was unnatural. Although, they were a group of shifters and vampires, so…

"That's the hard part. Either we find someone who has a knack for finding the sources of magic energy, or we follow the hellhounds or whatever the fuck else is summoned when they're called back to their owner." At that, almost unwillingly, her gaze slid over to B. And it stayed there.

"Hell no!" Kate snarled, jumping to her feet as she realized that Sly was about to suggest something heavily involving her mate. B had to cling onto Kate with arms and legs to stop herself from being thrown off, something B would have enjoyed had the situation been different and they had been wearing less clothes. "Whatever the fuck you're planning, just throw that right out of your head. We are not using B."

"I have to agree," Tanya added. "Even using B as bait isn't an option." Just the thought of B getting hurt made Tanya feel ill. The girl had already become such a huge part of their family that Tanya couldn't imagine losing her.

"You don't get it. Trying to track a hellhound-through portals-is a pretty damn dangerous thing to do. The chance of survival is-"

"I don't care. She's like my daughter," Carmen interjected, visibly upset as Eleazar tried to calm her down. "If something were to happen to her, I don't know what I'd do."

B felt touched by the support, but also knew Sly was right. She opened her mouth to explain why she would be necessary, but one of the wolves spoke first.

"What the hell? A few hours ago and I didn't even know cat shifters existed, and now you're telling me our survival hinges on one? Tell me what she can do that I can't." As the boy said this, he puffed out his chest, trying to look tough.

"I can sense magic. Even better than Sly," B spoke up, reluctantly letting go of Kate. Her feet hit the floor and she tried to step away, but Kate hooked an arm around her and pulled her back, all but glaring into B's eyes.

"So. Fucking. What." Kate let out a low rumble of anger, but it turned into a soft whine halfway through. "I'm not putting you in danger."

"It's the quickest and safest-"

"You shut up!" Kate snapped, whirling on Sly. "What's with you, anyways? You say you're her friend, and you act like you want to protect her, but-"

"I do!" Sly exploded, jumping to her feet. Tanya grabbed her by the wrist, stopping the panther from getting any closer to Kate, but it didn't help contain Sly's fury. "B's important to me, damn it. But I also have a mate, and a fuckload of other people to think about. While I don't like it, B can sense magical ability in a way that no one else I've come across can. We don't have a fucking choice."

"Uh, guys?" Emmett tried to interject nervously, but Rose quickly shushed him, knowing that Emmett could become the source of their fury if he tried to get involved.

"Yes we do! We can try to think up another plan! One that doesn't involve-"

"This is for the best," B said, pressing a hand to Kate's chest. "The sooner we get this over with, the better. If we put it off to try to come up with another plan and someone got hurt, or worse, even died…" B trailed off, horrified at the thought of losing a member of either family. She took a deep breath, focusing once again on Kate, and gave her mate a small smile. "Besides, it's not like I'm about to go through this alone now, am I?"

"Right," Sly piped up.

Kate stared down at B blankly, uncomprehending, then turned to Sly, then back to B. "But Sly…"

"I never said she was going to go through shit alone, now did I?" Sly muttered, crossing her arms over her chest angrily. "I plan on being there every step of the way, and I bet you do too. Of course, we can take half of the group with us while we searched, and the other half can stay here in case the town or anything else is attacked. That way, we can keep everyone as safe as possible."

"Any suggestions about who should be in what group?" Tanya asked, now relieved and quite a bit proud of her mate for thinking this through more than Tanya had thought.

"I think Alice should stay at the house so she can keep an eye on both groups," Sly answered. "She might not be able to see hellhounds, but she'll be able to see when our futures go blank. Of course, this means Jasper will probably stay too."

"Damn right," Jasper said, eyes steely. With all the danger going on, he wasn't about to leave his mate in the case that something happened.

"And I figure all mated pairs should stay together. The party going with B should also have more fighting power, since we're going to go right into the thick of things," Sly continued. "But B's group also needs to be smaller."

"Esme should definitely stay at the house," Tanya added. "That way, when Carlisle and Laurent come back, you can fill them in and stop Carlisle from worrying."

Sly and B both made faces at the thought of Laurent, but nobody seemed to notice.

"I guess that means I should stay back too," Irina said with a soft sigh. While she wasn't Laurent's mate, she felt he might still worry about her. Besides, Irina wasn't a fighter, and she knew it. If she went with B's group, it would cause more harm than good. Besides, she was also worried about Laurent. Yes, he had lost a part of his body, but losing a limb was much better than death, and she didn't want anyone she cared about to die.

"Yeah, good point," Sly muttered reluctantly. She really didn't like the idea of Laurent anywhere near any of them.

"I wish to stay too," Edward spoke up, tilting his chin in a haughty manner as if daring anyone to say no.

"No problem," Sly said easily enough, happy to have the other killjoy out of the way.

"Pussy," B added in a mumble, surprising a laugh out of Kate. The cat shifter just believed that Edward was too much of a coward and a wimp to risk putting himself in danger again.

Edward stiffened when he heard B's thoughts, and Kate's own thoughts agreeing with B's, although neither said a word of agreement out loud. He was about to argue, but made himself calm down. He wanted to have a talk with Laurent, and that wasn't going to happen if he fought himself right into B's group because of a few people's thoughts.

"Most of us will be coming with you," Sam spoke at one point, staring right at B. "We can fight, and we are already prepared to take down this threat."

"Damn, you act like we're doing this tonight," Kate muttered as B nodded in agreement with Sam.

"We are," B and Sly spoke as one, making Kate curse.

"The sooner the better, sorry babe," B added, a touch teasingly to get her mind off of what she was about to do.

Kate let out a huff of annoyance, but eventually had to agree. After all, the sooner they got this shit fest over with, the sooner Kate could have her mate under her and begging, not to mention squirming, moaning, screaming, writhing, as Kate did all sorts of things to her, in all sorts of positions. Damn, B would definitely…

"Kate, focus!" B snapped, all but dragging Kate out of her daydream. The cat shifter had felt the direction of Kate's thoughts, after all, and getting hot and bothered while getting ready to all but go to war was not a good idea in B's book. Her damned, sexy, horndog of a mate. It was already hard enough dealing with B's own urges.

"Right," Kate mumbled, a little reluctantly. A world of sex with her mate was a lot better to think about than the possible upcoming battle, after all.

And so the planning continued, other people getting switched from group to group, the discussing getting almost heated as lives were put on the line.

Nobody seemed to realize they were being watched. In fact, right outside one of the windows, a pair of flaming red eyes glowed as a particular hellhound watched the heated debate.

Soon.


	37. Chapter 37

_Author's Note: I feel like I need to apologize because I feel like this chapter is pretty horrible, but I just couldn't find a better way to write it. Hopefully I'll get back into writing this story and others soon._

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Chapter 37

It was only minutes after the plans were finalized that they were put into action. B, Kate, Emmett, Rosalie, Sly, Tanya, Sam, Jacob, and Jared would go to track the hellhounds, hopefully to their master. In the meantime, Carmen, Eleazar, Irina, Alice, Jasper, Esme, Edward, and the rest of the wolves would be staying behind at the house. What B's party decided to do was head towards where they were attacked and work back from there, so that's exactly what they did. As they left the home, B was completely focused on sensing magic that nobody should have been able to escape her notice.

However, something did. This something managed to slip right by B's notice, all because it knew how to hide its magic.

As soon as B and the group was out of sight, the hellhound slipped from the cover of the trees and shifted. Shadows seemed to come right out of the ground and cover the creature, melting and churning until a petite and beautiful girl, looking only to be eighteen at most, stood in its place. The girl had brown skin, medium length hair the darkest of blacks, and dark eyes with a hidden flame inside of them. She was also completely naked, and looking between the inhabitants of the house and herself, made the shadows incase her body, turning into a long black dress.

A smirk slid onto the girl's face as she skulked towards the house, still undetected. That is, until Edward stiffened at the creature's thoughts.

 _Mine. Taste. Devour. Ravish. Mine. Desire. Hungry. Take. Mine!_

Edward collapsed to his knees with the power of the thoughts, and everyone's attention turned to him, some people letting out exclamations of alarm. People asked him what was happening, but he couldn't even speak.

Then the front door exploded inwards, and he didn't need to speak at all.

Letting out hisses of warning, all of the vampires save for Edward jumped to their feet to face the threat. Alice rubbed at her temples as everyone's futures went dark, and she had to wonder how she couldn't have seen this happening sooner before focusing on the danger at hand.

The girl strode in like she owned the world, and many vampires believed that this was the girl behind the attacks; nothing else made sense after all. What other reason would a girl have to destroy a door and storm someone's house?

The girl looked around the room, clearly unconcerned with any possible threat, before her eyes landed on a certain blonde. "Irina," she said in a soft, smooth, almost exotic sounding voice, one that coaxed the vampire to look into the girl's eyes.

Immediately, Irina's breath caught, and she stared. She stared, and stared, and stared, and couldn't look away. As she stared, Irina felt something shift under her feet, and it was like everything had fallen into place. She swallowed and took a hesitant step forward, shaking off Eleazar's and Carmen's attempts to grab her. The entire time this took, the girl simply stood there, a small and clearly pleased smirk on her face.

"Who are you?" Irina asked in a breathy whisper, now standing only two feet away.

The girl took a single step towards Irina, putting herself in Irina's personal space. It would be all too easy for Irina to wrap her arms around the girl and pull her against her body, but she didn't. She was still so confused, it felt like everything Irina was was in turmoil.

"Malik," the girl said, pronouncing it like "Mal-eek," in that same amazing voice, looking up into Irina's eyes as the girl pressed a hand against her own chest. Then the girl grinned hugely, showing off a set of sharp fangs. "Irina," the girl repeated, this time pressing a hand to Irina's chest, right above her heart. "Mine."

 _Here. Mine. Want. Take. Dominate. Have. Soon. Need. Irina._

Edward cried out and fell to his arms and knees as he clutched at his head, the power behind the thoughts getting even stronger, but only Esme seemed to worry about him. Everyone else was completely focused on the spectacle happening right there in the house.

Irina's lips parted, but nothing came out. For so long, she wanted to find her mate, to the point that she deluded herself into thinking Laurent was the one. And now, here was this girl; this tiny, beautiful, most likely dangerous tiny, gorgeous girl. A girl that, while Irina knew nothing about, filled a piece of Irina's heart that the vampire had long known was missing.

"Irina," the girl said, but now she sounded frustrated, almost whiny.

 _Touch. Taste. Have. Desire. Need. Hunger. Mine. Do not scare._

In the background, Edward let out a pathetic whimper.

"I, um...I'm sorry," Irina stammered, and the girl's expression darkened, lips skimming back from her teeth in a snarl.

 _Denied? No. Have. Devour. Touch. Mine. Mate._

Now Edward was openly groaning, all but writhing in pain, feeling like the girl's thoughts would split his head open.

"This...I didn't expect this to happen, not now...I'm just a little shocked. But...I am so undeniably happy right now as well," Irina said, her voice dropping to a low murmur as she dared to reach out and touch the girl's cheek. The girl leaned into her touch, giving Irina such a charming grin that would have taken Irina's breath away if she needed it. "You said you were Malik, right?"

The girl's grin widened.

 _Yes! Mate. Have. Take. Name. Mine. All mine...Irina. Mate. Accepted._

Edward's eyes snapped open and he gasped, seeing all sorts of horrifying images in the girl's brain. Already, Malik was thinking about performing all sorts of sexual acts on Irina, wondering of Irina's taste, the feel of her, how she would sound, everything...it just made Edward want to puke.

He was so horrified by Malik's erotic images, that he didn't even notice another thought that slipped into Malik's mind-her desire to slaughter Laurent. She hated him, hated that he escaped her, that he got to live after touching her mate in such a way. Hated him helping the other vampires to try and keep her chained, away from her _mate._

Four people needed to die. The dark skinned man, the blond man with the ponytail, the redheaded woman, and the one who summoned Malik in the first place. Then, everything would be okay; no one would dare try to take Malik away from her mate ever again.

Oh yes, Malik was still very pissed. After all, the man who summoned her had taken her away from her mate when Malik first laid eyes on her nearly five hundred years ago, and he would try to again. He needed to be killed in the most painful way for not letting her have Irina then, and for trying to keep her from them now.

 _Mine. Irina...Mate. Kill them. Protect her._

Irina, of course, had no idea what Malik was thinking at the moment, but she could tell how happy and content the girl was. She couldn't stop caressing the smaller girl's face, still amazed she had found her mate, and even more amazed at how all she had to do was look at the girl to feel desire blaze to life inside of her. That dress certainly wasn't helping Irina keep her desires in check.

"Who are you?" Irina murmured in clear wonder, continuing to caress Malik's cheek.

At her question, Malik simply blinked. "Hellhound," she answered, not even considering telling Irina anything but the truth.

The entire room tensed, even Irina, at Malik's confession, with many hisses and snarls echoing through the room, sounds that Malik didn't even bat an eyelash at. However, most of the house's occupants settled down just as quickly, although clearly uneasy at the thought of having a hellhound in their home. After all, regardless of what Malik was, it was clear that Irina was undoubtedly the center of Malik's world.

Irina, however, was still tense as she stared into Malik's warm eyes. Her mind flashed back to those same eyes, this time blazing viciously as a hellhound attacked Laurent. How that hellhound had originally been aiming for her, although at the time Irina hadn't felt any actual killing intent. This is the one, Irina realized. This is the same hellhound as back then. The one who had nearly killed Laurent and ripped off his arm in the process.

"Oh dear," Irina murmured, realizing why Malik would have attacked Laurent in the first place; either because Malik thought he had been trying to claim Irina as his own, or keep Irina away from her. She had to make it clear to Malik not to kill anyone. "You're the one who...listen to me, Malik, you can't kill-"

As she spoke, the front door opened, and in stepped Carlisle, an exhausted and seemingly half dead Laurent leaning heavily on him, an arm thrown over Carlisle's shoulders.

It all happened so fast, that even the vampires couldn't react in time.

Malik, being the closest to the front door and the one who immediately realized who had just arrived, tore away from Irina and lunged. Neither Carlisle or Laurent had time to process what was happening, or even protect themselves, as Malik attacked, shifting halfway into a huge, roaring hellhound.

Somehow, Carlisle hadn't just been unhurt, but was left standing, Malik somehow attacking Laurent and Laurent alone, knocking the man right out of the house and onto the front lawn.

It was only three seconds after she first latched her teeth onto Laurent's neck that both vampires and wolves-save for Edward, who was still rolling around and moaning pathetically on the floor-jumped into action to try and pull Malik off of the french vampire, but Malik suddenly set herself on fire, burning everything she touched and forcing the vampires and wolves to step back.

 _KILL. SLAUGHTER. HURT. KILL. DARK MAN. DIE. DESTROY. PAY. MY IRINA._

Back in the house, Edward screamed from the pain forced on him.

"Malik, stop!" Irina screamed, and the flames instantly died. Malik lifted her head, cocking her head in a confused manner that was almost cute, and trotted back up to Irina, shifting back into a human shape, remembering to add her dress to her body at the last moment.

Everyone couldn't help but stare at where Laurent had been mauled, feeling a cold terror at how easily everything had happened.

Yes, Irina's scream had stopped the vicious attack, but it had been too late. Laurent was dead, and not even ashes remained.

Only a few miles away, B's group was still actively searching for any signs of the hellhounds; they had managed to find the spot the hellhounds had disappeared to using portals, but after a brief probe, B realized that the portals had simply transported them back to hell, not to whoever had summoned them in the first place. With nothing to feel but disappointment and worry, the group turned in the direction of the Cullen house and started heading home, believing they now had no way to find their attackers until the next battle happened.

B was hit the hardest, feeling pretty useless, and even Kate's jokes and groping didn't seem to do much to cheer B up.

No one was aware of what had transpired in the house while they had been away; they had no idea that they had lost a great source of fear for two cat shifters, and gained a hellhound in the process. Otherwise, Sly and B's next plan would already be underway, and the two would be feeling more cheerful than ever before.

Of course, even those at the house had no idea that Malik's appearance would be the turning point. The most dangerous battle any of them had ever faced would soon be upon them, and even the hellhound herself had no idea.

Many more miles away, James and Victoria sat, both confused as to why it appeared that the lose hellhound hadn't appeared to kill anybody yet. However, once they would find out the news of what would happen, they would be forced into action.

After all, they couldn't risk losing their prey, right?


	38. Chapter 38

_Author's Note: Hey, just wanted to let everyone know that I'm updating all of my stories as quickly as possible. No story is impacting another on how long it takes to update, it's simply that I can't get myself to write for certain stories; basically, I have no muse for them. I'm sorry if this frustrates you all, but I'm trying my best and that's all I can really do at them moment, unless you all want crappy, half hearted chapters I had to force out of my butt. Anyways, thanks for reading._

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Chapter 38

"Malik, how could you?" Irina demanded, clearly upset as she faced her now human mate, eyes glistening with unshed tears. "How could you kill him? I know you don't like him at that you felt like he was trying to take me from you, but that doesn't mean you had to kill him like that. Especially so brutally!"

If Irina was upset, Malik appeared to be tortured. She also appeared to be very, very confused. "No. No cry. I kill bad man!" she said urgently, pointing to the ashes. "I protect! He bad. Bad as others!"

"He wasn't a bad man, Malik," Irina said, taking a deep unnecessary breath as more tears gathered.

"Yes! Dark man bad." Malik let out a low growl, frustrated, and stomped her foot.

"It's too late," Carlisle said, taking a step forward. "He's gone, and arguing won't bring him back." He took another step towards the two women warily, knowing just how dangerous Malik was.

It was at that moment that Malik became truly aware of Carlisle, as well as his mixed scent. She snarled at him, but remembering how upset Irina had gotten, didn't launch herself at him. Instead, she crouched in front of Irina to protect her from him.

"Malik!" Irina shouted in shock, reaching out to grab Malik in case she was about to attack.

"He smell like other bad man and bad woman. Danger," Malik said, pointing at Carlisle. "Dangerous to you."

"No, he is not," Irina said with a huff, getting increasingly frustrated. "And what are you talking about? What bad man and woman?"

"Holy fuck balls, a hellhound," Sly exclaimed as her and the rest of the search party arrived at the scene and caught the new girl's scent. "And she's not trying to kill anybody. What the hell is going on?"

B, who had tensed and stepped in front of Kate upon scenting Malik-only to be picked up and forced behind Kate, who was trying to protect her, which then resulted in them scuffling over who would protect who-paused as she caught sight of the girl's magic. There were only small tendrils lingering around the girl that linked her to her summoner, but they were clearly broken, which meant the hellhound was supposed to be free. However, since the hellhound wasn't trying to kill anyone, it was clear that something strange was going on. Realizing this, B relaxed fractionally, but Kate didn't. She refused to take any chances in regards to her mate's safety.

"Oh, let me go, you great buffoon," B hissed, slapping at Kate's hands insistently.

"I'm just trying to protect you, damn it," Kate grumbled in reply, but finally let B go. However, the girl wouldn't get far if she tried to do something stupid to put herself in danger, no matter how fast the cat was.

"Yeah, yeah, who cares?" B shot back, which would have resulted in Kate dragging the girl right back behind her, had Tanya not stepped between the two.

"So, what exactly happened while we were away?" Tanya asked, turning her gaze from the hellhound to Irina.

"God damn it, Tanya," Sly grumbled, not liking the idea of any danger near her mate. She started to try and step in front of the blonde in case the hellhound would suddenly try something, but at one glare from the coven leader, Sly backed down. Instead of standing between Tanya and the hellhound, she stood next to her mate with her arms crossed over her chest, clearly grumpy that she couldn't have her way.

B couldn't help but snicker. "Looks like we know who's wearing the pants in your relationship, huh Sly?"

"Shut it, kit," Sly hissed back, then let out another hiss of pain before whirling to glare at Kate while rubbing her ass. The ass who had just sadly been injured by a pretty powerful electric shock.

"What? My hand slipped," Kate said, trying to act innocent.

"Oh, so you just happened to grab an ass that didn't belong to your mate?" B asked, frowning as she put her hands on her hips.

"Wait, what? No," Kate exclaimed, trying to fix any possible damage. "I mean...I barely touched her. And in the first place, I was just trying to avenge your honor for calling you a kit. I mean, you're clearly grown up and all...clearly." As she spoke, her gaze moved to one of those clearly grown-up parts of B.

"My eyes are up here," B said, putting a finger under Kate's chin and forcing the vampire's gaze from her breasts to her eyes. "And you won't get to look at that part of me naked anytime soon unless you come up with a good explanation as to why you touched Sly's ass, giving her an electric shock or not."

"No! Please, anything but that!" Kate said, clear agony gleaming in her eyes at the thought of not getting to touch or see her mate in the near future. "You know I'll die without sex."

"And what a pathetic death it will be," B was quick to reply, clearly not sympathizing with Kate's pain.

"Take that, blondie," Sly exclaimed with pride.

"You do realize I'm blonde too, correct?" Tanya asked dryly. "So, let me ask you this; is _blondie_ an insult from you, or a simple statement of fact?"

"Shit," Sly muttered, not sure exactly how to reply.

"And you thought I was bad, huh Rosie?" Emmett chuckled, earning him a half hearted slap as behind them, a few wolves chuckled. Some were thinking about how glad they were that they were single, while others were worried about their imprints, and realizing that out of all the imprinted couples, not a one who wore the pants in the relationship could turn into a wolf. How many of them would get fucked with by their women on a whim?

Across the clearing, Malik looked up at Irina with confusion, unclear about what exactly what was going on among the group that had just appeared.

"Don't worry about them. They're just weird," Irina said, stroking the smaller girl's hair-only to frown when she realized that the sneaky hellhound had cuddled up to Irina, arms wrapped tightly around her with the most adorable expression in existence on her face. And all without Irina noticing, no less. However, she couldn't dredge up any anger at Malik, at least not while that current expression was on the girl's face.

The majority arriving group continued to banter among themselves-B and Tanya partially just messing with their mates for the hell of it, Sly and Kate honestly worried they weren't getting any that night, with Emmett and Rosalie just bantering for the fun of it. It honestly appeared that it would never stop, until Carlisle decided it would be best to speak up and state what happened.

"Laurent is dead," he said as a start, and immediately, everyone shut up and turned to stare at him.

"Fucking finally," Kate muttered with a low breath of relief. Bickering forgotten, B leaned into Kate, hiding her smile of relief in the blonde's side.

"Hell yeah!" Sly exclaimed at the same time, pumping a fist in victory.

From her place glued to Irina's side, Malik grinned widely, proud of her kill and of the other's excitement over what she had done.

This, of course, earned a lot of disapproving looks towards Kate and the two cat shifters, as no one felt a death should be celebrated-or, in cases like Tanya's, she felt Laurent's death shouldn't be accepted so happily right in front of Irina, her sister, the one who should was likely incredibly upset about it. Really, Sly and Kate couldn't have waited at least until Irina wasn't present to celebrate? At least B was trying to hide her expression.

After giving Kate, Sly, and B a disapproving glance herself, Irina turned to look at Malik-only to find the hellhound still grinning with pride. "Really?" she asked with exasperation.

Immediately, Malik fixed her expression, trying to appear remorseful and regretful so Irina wouldn't get mad at her again. Irina rolled her eyes, but decided that the talk would have to be resumed later.

"Anyways, Malik is the one who killed him," Irina said, gesturing to the girl still glued to her side. "She's also my mate."

"Huh," Sly said, letting out a huff of surprise. "Who would've guessed?" She almost added " _Good job taking out the trash since I couldn't do it"_ but at a glare from Tanya, thought better of it and shut her mouth.

"So, she killed him because she felt he was trying to take away her mate?" B asked with curiosity and understanding. B knew that was exactly what she would do herself if someone tried to take Kate away from her, especially with how haywire her instincts were. It had already taken everything she had not to launch herself at Sly despite the fact that Kate was the one who touched her ass, which was just ridiculous. To B, she felt that Malik would feel a similar desire, if not a stronger one, to do the same.

"Yes, and no," Carlisle said, trying to figure out the best way to explain exactly what had transpired in the other group's absence.

"Bad man!" Malik exclaimed, a growl in her voice. "Needed to die. Just like the dirty man and fire head woman."

"Well, that's what she says, anyways," Irina said, a little nervously, as she had no idea who Malik was talking about. Everybody else seemed a little confused as to the other two that Malik was talking about as well, and clearly had no idea what this information meant. That is, all but one, who got a very uneasy feeling in her gut.

B stepped forward, towards Malik, and hissed at Kate when Kate tried to stop her. Kate, sensing how important this was to her mate, let B continue forward, all while keeping close to B's back. Just because Malik was Irina's mate, didn't make the hellhound any less dangerous in Kate's eyes, and she didn't want to take any chances.

B, however, didn't give a rat's ass about Malik being dangerous. In fact, the idea didn't even cross her mind. "Malik," B said, stopping a few feet away when the hellhound started to tense and bare her fangs at the cat shifter. "I need to know. The people you're talking about...they're red eyed vampires, right?"

Malik looked up at Irina, who nodded, urging Malik to speak. There was clear worry in Irina's eyes, having noticed B's sudden mood shift, not to mention the slight scent of fear that suddenly came from the shifter.

"Yes," Malik said, looking back over at B.

"The woman has long and wild bright red hair, and is tall, beautiful, but looks almost feral, right? And the man is a little bit taller than her, with long sandy blonde hair, a cruel face, and a stocky build? They're mated, aren't they? And their names are James and Victoria?" B asked in quick succession, already starting to shake with a mix of fear and hatred.

Malik blinked at B, clear surprise on her face. Then, that surprise turned to suspicion. "Yes. You know bad people?"

B swallowed hard, and in that moment, it felt like even her heart stopped beating. Kate was so worried that she stepped in front of her mate, grabbed B by the shoulders, and shook her repeatedly while calling her name.

Finally, B recovered from whatever state her destructive emotions put her in, taking a deep breath and lowering her head. "Oh, I know them alright. And I want them dead."

Not too far away, Victoria's powers twinged in warning. Danger was coming for them.


	39. Chapter 39

_Author's Note: Sorry for the wait, but here it is. Sadly, I'm still struggling a bit, but at least I'm able to write._

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Chapter 39

Now back in their room in the Cullen house, B was beyond agitated. She paced back and forth, all but shaking with the need to shift, to kill, to just tear her claws into something, despite feeling a nearly overwhelming fear. The only thing that kept her in the house and stopped her from doing something stupid was the fact that Kate was leaning against the door, watching B's every move.

"Isabella, talk to me. I'm worried about you," Kate said at last, upset and anxious after witnessing her mate's moodshift.

The cat shifter paused mid-pace, and turned to stare at Kate, eyes bright with pain. A part of her just wanted to launch herself at Kate and lose herself in the lust and love she felt for her mate, but the wiser part of her knew she couldn't put off her memories and revenge forever. If those two were really so close, they had to die.

"I...I...those people are the ones who…" B started, struggling to get the words out. "If they're close by…"

Kate, unable to stand seeing her mate in so much emotional pain, walked over and enveloped B in her arms, hugging her tight. B burrowed into Kate's body, clutching at Kate just as tightly as B was holding her.

The cat shifter tried to be strong, she really did. But Kate always had a special way about her, one where she could easily, with a touch or a grin, rip down B's walls. She'd be there to help get B to release her pent up emotions. And when B was done, Kate would be there to build B back up and make her realize that no matter what happened, everything was going to be alright as long as they were together.

B's tears stained Kate's shirt, but Kate didn't once complain. Instead, she just stood there, holding B, letting her get everything out.

"I'm here for you, kitten. Always," Kate muttered, choked up with her own emotion. It was hard, seeing B in so much emotional agony. Kate could treat B's wounds, hell, maybe even prevent them from happening, but emotional wounds were a completely different thing.

It had to have taken at least an hour, but B finally got a hold of herself. Pulling back, her eyes were dark, a mix of sadness and fury in her eyes. "The two who Malik mentioned. They're the ones who slaughtered my family."

Kate's lips skimmed back from her teeth, which she bared in anger. "I guessed as much," she replied, her own fury rising to the surface. While B hadn't been able to finish explaining until that last sentence, the only reason B would ever get so upset was if it was something involving her family, past or current. "We'll get them, B. But we can't go running after them without a plan. We don't even know where they are." Surprisingly, Kate was actually the voice of reason in this situation. Go figure.

B stiffened, letting out a low growl. At first, she appeared to want to fight Kate's argument, to make her mate see that they needed to go after the two vampires and go after them immediately. But after a few seconds, she let out a loud breath of air and once again buried herself into Kate's body. "You're right," she mumbled into Kate's shoulder. "I hate to say it, but you're right."

At any other time, Kate would have preened. It wasn't every day that B decided she was right, after all. More often than not, she'd even get smacked, but only when Kate was wrong in the worst possible way. But she couldn't celebrate. Not when B was still in so much turmoil, pain clear in her face and in the bond, almost as if she was currently reliving that entire nightmare that happened all of those years ago.

Kate hated them. She hated those vampires for hurting B, for killing the girl's family and making her go through so much heartbreak. The vampire needed to make sure they paid in the most painful way possible.

As she thought of this, her anger got the best of her. B let out a soft yelp and jumped, and Kate realized that she had accidentally shocked B. Clearly it was light, but it was definitely enough to sting.

"Shit, I'm so sorry!" Kate exclaimed. Damn it, she couldn't believe her power had gotten the better of her, and at a time like this of all things! Why did she have to fuck up in the worst way? "I just, my anger got the best of me...I want to kill them too, and-"

"It's fine," B was quick to assure her. But the shifter suddenly pushed the vampire, and Kate found herself on her back on the bed with B straddling her. "Actually, it's more than fine." B ripped off her own shirt, flinging the remains aside." Kate's eyes were immediately drawn to B's chest, and despite the emotional situation they were in, her mouth started to water. They her gaze was drawn to B's dark eyes as B forced Kate's head up so that their faces were only inches apart. With her free hand, B grabbed Kate's wrist and moved the vampire's hand into B's jeans until Kate cupped B's ass. "In fact, I want you to shock me again."

"What?" Kate couldn't have been more surprised, sure she had misheard or something. No matter how light the shock, there was never anyone who asked for Kate to shock them again. And here was her mate, demanding it?

"You heard me," B growled, grabbing Kate's shirt in both hands and pulling, ripping it in half so B had full access to Kate's front. As she reached for Kate's pants, she said, "Shock. Me. Again." As Kate's pants received the same treatment as her shirt, B took Kate's lips in a hard, desperate kiss.

All B wanted was to feel safe. To feel loved. To just forget about the oncoming threat, one who B certainly wouldn't run from. No, she'd chase the two vampires to the ends of the earth if she had to. She needed to kill them, to make them pay for what they've done to her and her family.

But right now, all B wanted was Kate. If something came up, B knew they would be interrupted, and not just B but Kate as well might have to rush right into battle. They'd be in danger, and possibly end up risking their lives. Just the thought of Kate in danger nearly made her go feral, ready to take on the entire world if it would keep Kate safe. She knew Kate would feel the same way, if the demonstrations she had already given were anything to go by.

B didn't want the fear and need to fight for each other to be the last thing she and Kate felt before going into a fight. She wanted to think about the sweetness, the comfort, the love they had for each other. Not to mention the earth shattering sex.

So it only made sense to spend as much time as they could together. And B always preferred their alone time spent naked.

Kate definitely didn't understand why B suddenly wanted to be shocked, but she'd have to be dead and burned to resist B's clear come on. Still kissing B, Kate pushed B's pants down as far as they could go, and B quickly kicked them off. Once again, B was going commando, and it made Kate's mouth water as her hands moved up and down B's naked body. Then, hands moving back to B's ass, she gave the cat shifter a squeeze and a shock.

This one was stronger than before, and it made B's entire body shudder. Kate only had a half second to worry if she had used too strong of a shock, but then B moaned into Kate's mouth as her hands moved to rub Kate's breasts.

Breaking the kiss, B's mouth moved to Kate's ear. "Again," she panted, tweaking Kate's nipples as she took Kate's earlobe into her mouth.

Kate didn't shock B right away. Instead, her eyes fluttered closed with a moan as she nearly drowned in the pleasure B was giving her. "Wait...I don't understand...don't want to hurt you. And, holy fuck, I can't focus while you're-" a strangled cry snuck out of Kate's throat as B's thigh snuck between Kate's legs and pressed upwards. The vampire's hips lifted as she ground against the thigh, making them both wild. Shit, was Kate wet. And Kate only had to glance at B's pelvis to find her dripping.

"I want to be hurt," B replied in a soft whisper. The shock was a mix of pleasure and pain, and it surprised B that she hadn't thought to ask this of Kate earlier. It was especially nice, as each shock made B's mind blank, and it definitely kept her thoughts and emotions from spiraling back into the vortex of vengeance that had already threatened to go out of control upon hearing of James and Victoria. "But I trust you, Kate. You won't go too far."

Kate's black eyes gazed up at B. The vampire looked like she was being tortured, and she was; mostly by her own instincts and fears. Everything she was went against hurting her mate, especially with her own power.

B could understand where she was coming from, but also knew that Kate was looking at shocking her all wrong. "Kate, it feels good. I'm not telling you to shock the shit out of me or anything. It's just rough sex. Just like when you bite me or dominate me."

That was enough for Kate and her dirty mind. With B's words, she took B's mouth in another kiss, letting out a hungry, almost playful growl that B returned. As she did so, her hand snuck between B's legs. Kate tapped B's pussy, delivering a slight shock as she did so, making B shudder as a little mewl of pleasure escaped her lips.

"God, yes!" B groaned, hips rocking.

Kate snarled as she started to get overly excited. She loved knowing she could pleasure her mate, and feeling B cling to her as she squirmed with pleasure was the most amazing feeling in the world. And since both were currently happening, it was only natural that Kate's desires got the better of her as she started to get out of control.

All B did was blink, and Kate face seemed to change completely. Instead of the slight hesitance and desire, the blonde's face became a serious mask, a hungry fire burning in the depths of Kate's obsidian eyes. Right then, B felt Kate's dominance and desire much stronger than ever before, and without a thought, she tilted her head back, baring her neck in submission.

Kate took B's throat in a human heartbeat, biting down just hard enough so that B could really feel the pressure, but not hard enough to break skin. Although giving B another mark would certainly fill Kate with pleasure and pride, that wasn't the reason why she was taking B's throat. It was an act of claiming, but also an act of trust on B's part.

Pulling B tightly against her, Kate caught B's nipple between two fingers and delivered another shock, making B arch into Kate's body and cry out. Kate tightened her grip on B's throat, but once again, no skin was broken.

Taking her time despite her own desperation, Kate rolled them so that B was now on her back, Kate on her arms and knees on top of her. Releasing B's throat, she made sure to lick, kiss, and nip every inch of B's front, starting at her feet and making her way up while ignoring B's core, breast and nipples, every once in awhile tapping the shifter to deliver a light shock. She had B writhing under her, pleading, and, to both girls' surprise, B half shifted so that her ears, claws, fangs, and eyes were all cat. B's tail also came out of hiding, which Kate grabbed with one hand. And when she shocked B's tail, the girl arched off of the bed with a scream, coming immediately.

Kate wasn't anywhere near done. Taking a nipple in her mouth, she nipped lightly as she stroked B's tail, her other hand caressing B's side. B couldn't keep still, letting out whimpers and cries, her claws scratching up Kate's back as she fought to grip onto her mate. It thrilled Kate, urging her on. She wanted to pleasure so thoroughly the girl wouldn't be able to move when she was done.

After having finished teasing both nipples, Kate moved down B's body. She spread the shifter's legs, and without warning, licked her tongue along the length of B's slit.

"Fuck! Oh, fuck, fuck, fuck!" B hissed, her hands gripping Kate's head with the same desperation she hadn't stopped feeling since Kate had started. "Kate, wait...it's my turn to…I already..."

Kate knew what B was trying to say, but she didn't care. Kate's need for orgasm was at the back of her mind. She was already nearly overwhelmed with pleasure simply from pleasuring B, and she would come much too quickly if B were to touch her. Right now, she wanted to put all of her efforts into fucking B's brains out.

With that in mind, Kate ate B out with a single minded need. She didn't stop when B came again, and then came a third time only moments later when Kate started to incorporate shocks and her fingers. But then Kate noticed that B was pulling on hair, trying to bring Kate up B's body. So Kate moved, crawling up B's body until they were eye to eye.

B felt strangely warm and tingly, thinking it was due to the shocks and amazing sex. But despite the way her body felt, not to mention her lightheadedness, B was completely of sound mind as she gazed at Kate with absolute adoration and said, "I love you more than anything in this world, Katrina Denali."

Kate's eyes started to glisten, and she felt so damn sappy in that moment. But she was also the happiest woman in the world. "I love you too, Isabella." She leaned down, taking B's mouth in a gentle kiss. As she did so, B's hand moved between their bodies, and she pressed two fingers into Kate's wetness.

Kate gasped and groaned, eyes fluttering with bliss as she lowered her hips, taking the length of B's fingers inside of her.

"You too," Kate said in a voice that sounded almost petulant. It felt like she was daring B to argue with her.

"I've already-" B started to argue, because who wouldn't when Kate pretty much threw the challenge down like that? However, she couldn't finish arguing, as Kate pressed her body against B's and ground her thigh up against Bella's core, an act both sexual and dominating. The look in Kate's eyes made it clear that B was going to come again. So, seeing no choice, B gave up and let Kate pleasure her as well.

As their fingers moved in and out of each other, their pleasure mounted to an almost painful height. Both girls felt incredibly warm and tingly, almost as if they were in some sappy fairytale romance movie. And that sappiness was only intensified when they both came at the same time.

Kate relaxed on top of B, taking deep breaths that felt strangely necessary despite the fact that she didn't need to breathe. The warm and tingly feeling slowly faded from her, while the feeling only intensified inside of B. And it stayed there for a long, long time.

Neither knew it at first, but it would soon become undeniable.

B was pregnant.


End file.
